Trigun: Young Blood
by VaanRagnarok
Summary: Three years after the defeat of Millions Knives, Vash the Stampede finds himself guiding the next generation in the ways of peace and love. but his new siblings hold the fate of planet Gunsmoke in their hands, and they are not alone. Based on Anime.
1. Chapter 1

This story is a combination of two writers. It is told from two differant points of view, and the main characters names are listed at the top of each section. There are two very differant writing styles here, we hope you enjoy both, and welcome comments.

Chapter1

-Rhez-

MAIN GENERATORS NEAR EMPTY. LOGS INDICATE NO CREW PRESENCE IN ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY THREE YEARS, FIVE MONTHS, TWELVE DAYS, SEVEN HOURS, THIRTY SIX MINUTES AND FOURTY ONE SECONDS… TAKING ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS. ACTIVATING SEED PROTICALS…

WARNING, TOTAL POWER FAILURE IN T-MINUS THRITY SECONDS….. TWENTY SECONDS….. TEN SECONDS…. NINE… EIGHT… SEVEN … SIX …. FIVE… FOUR… THREE…. TWO… ONE…

BACKUP GENERATOR ACTIVATION INITIATED… PROCEEDING WITH SEED ACTIVATION…

The sound of generators hummed to life in the darkness of the room. Lights flickered on and illuminated the place. It was a large all metal room with cabinets and shelves along every wall. A large glass orb was suspended in the center and was clouded from the inside. The entire room was at a tilt as if the structure it was within was as well. A tiny slit opened down the orb and the gasses within rushed out and into the room. The orb slowly opened up and a soaking wet naked body fell from inside of it as liquid poured out of the bottom. It was male, maybe fifteen years old and had long light tan hair that went all way to his waist. He slowly opened his eyes and began to cough. He got to his hands and knees and puked up close to a gallon of the liquid. The boy tried to stand, but fell back to the ground and began convulsing.

SEED PROTICALS ACTIVATED… INITIATING FULL…FULL…FULL… ERROR, BACKUP GENERATOR DAMAGED… POWER INSUFICIENT…

The lights began to fade and flicker as the boy stopped convulsing and sat up. The room became pitch black again as the lights died.

"Where… where am I? What's going on?" He said absently as his head slowly stopped spinning. He reached around in the darkness until he found something on the floor. He picked it up and fumbled around with it, hitting a tiny button on its base. A faint green glow came to life as he turned on the light stick he had found. He stood up and waved it around, trying to get a better look. "What is this place?" he asked the darkness, but there was no response. He slowly walked around, trying to keep his balance in the slightly slanted room. He found a doorway and walked out into a hall. He wandered down it, looking for something, anything. All of the closed doors he came across were electronically operated, thus locked. He went into the first open room he came across. It looked like a bedroom, a simple bed and nightstand that were bolted to the floor were the only things in the there. He looked into the open closet and pulled out some clothes. He sat the light stick down and put on the simple red shirt. He pulled on a pair of boxers and plain brown pants. He found shoes and picked the light stick back up. He walked back out into the hall and kept looking for someone. He turned a corner and saw a sliver of light at the end of the long dark hall. "Hello? Is someone there?" he said as he picked up his pace and began trotting down the hallway. He reached a partially open door and pried it open. It was a very small room, with a ladder leading up and bright light coming from somewhere above. The floor was covered with sand and he scrambled over it, climbing up the ladder and throwing the light stick away. He climbed upwards quickly, reaching out for the light. He burst up through the hatch that the ladder led to and letting the light engulf him. He stepped out onto the surface, shielding his eyes from the bright sun. His eyes slowly adjusted to the bright light, the immense heat beating down on him. He looked around, and saw nothing but desert in every direction. "Where the hell am I?" He said in amazement as the fresh air and sun began to overwhelm him.

-Stran-

Whoosh a fist flies by Vash's face as he dodges pulling out his pistol. A hand reaches for the gun twisting it around and pointing it back towards Vash. He responds by rolling his body around to the back of the boy. Now back to back Vash and the boy lock arms at waist length. Sweat glistens off their foreheads and roll down their cheeks as both men fight for the upper hand not letting the other get to much control.

Simultaneously both of them kick there heel against the ground revealing a 4 inch blade out of the front of there shoe then reach back in front of the other then lock legs before either has a chance to use there boot blade. Finally the boy releases his grip from the tall spiked haired man and reaches between his legs and grabs Vash's non grappled leg and pulls it up between his legs sending Vash to the ground.

The boy spins around and choke holds Vash. The humanoid typhoon grabs the boy's arm with his right hand and his head with the left flipping the boy off his back and onto the ground belly up.

After he figures out what happened he opens his eyes only to see Vash's left arm gun millimeters away from his eyes. "Damn it you got me again."

"Yeah but your getting real strong and fast soon I might be the one saying that." "Yeah well until th. " The boy stops mid sentence. "What's wrong Vash you look like you just seen a ghost."

"Did you feel that Stran." The younger boy maybe 5 foot 9 inch's unusually tall for his age. The boy was dressed in semi baggy white pants with buckles and holes threw out them. A tight white shirt also with straps and buckles and a tight midriff elastic tank top over top of it. And over all that was a long black trench coat vest. The boy was well built due to his extreme circumstances. Finally he had bright blue eyes and long spiked black hair.

"Feel what Vash?" Stran replied "I'm not sure but I think another one of our siblings has awoke." "Another sibling?" Stran replied with a somewhat confused look on his face.

"Well that's enough for today we have to get going." "Alright Vash let me pack up camp and we'll head out.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter2

-Rhez-

He walked for what seemed like forever. The hot sun beating down on him like it had a score to settle. He had walked in the same direction since he had emerged from the lab. Something was pulling him this way, drawing him like a magnet. He could hear the words over and over in his head, but he didn't know what they meant.

"This way little seed… come to me, come to me and grow." He kept walking, every once in a while turning back to see how far he had come. He couldn't see the little hill that he had crawled out of anymore, so he assumed he had came a long way. "This way little seed… come to me, come to me and grow." He heard it again. "Who are you?" He finally said out loud. No response came back, so he was going to ask again, but then someone answered him. "Family." Was all it said. He thought about it for a second, than decided it was a good enough answer. "And who am I?" He asked as he kept walking. The voice waited a long time to respond. "Family… my family." He shook his head and frowned. "A name, what is my name?" He stopped walking and looked around, he didn't see anyone. The voice didn't say anything, so he started walking again. "I must be crazy…" He said as he wiped sweat from his forehead. "Rhez…" the voice said after a long time. Rhez stopped walking again and looked around. "Am I crazy?" He smiled when he said it as the thought of a man asking himself if he was crazy struck him as funny. "Perhaps…" The voice said. Rhez started walking again as he talked to himself. "Where are you?" The voice took its usual long time to respond. "This way…" He smiled and shook his head. "Figures…"

He kept walking, for hours, maybe days, he had no idea, the suns never seemed to move in this place. Rhez slowly came to realize that he was lying down. He opened his eyes and found that he was in a bed. He sat up quickly and jumped out of the bed. His head spun as he did and he went sprawling to the ground. Rhez thudded loudly as he hit and banged his forehead on the floor. "Shit…"

The door opened up and a woman walked in. "Are you awake, I thought I heard… oh my!" She rushed over to Rhez and helped him up and sat him on the bed. "Where am I?" He asked for the second time recently. "You're in a safe place now friend, wandered in near the edge of town and passed out from heat stroke a couple of hours ago." He let the swirling in his head subside and nodded to her. "Thank you for helping me." He said. She smiled and gave him a glass of water. "Here, you need to re-hydrate." He drank the water and gave the glass back to her. "Are you hungry?" She asked. He hadn't noticed the rumbling in his stomach until she said 'hungry'. "Yeah, I feel like I could eat a whole cow." He said laughing. She smiled and helped him up. "Luckily for you this is a hotel and restaurant." She walked over to the door and he followed, a little shaky at first, but doing just fine as he got his balance. She led him downstairs and sat him down at a table. There were a few other people here, eating and talking. She came back a few minutes later with a plate with a big steak on it. She gave him a fork and a knife and he dug in. She sat across from him, just staring at him with a smile on her face the whole time. Rhez looked up, and with a full mouth, spoke to her. "What? Is there something wrong?" She shook her head and laughed. "No, it's just… you just remind me of someone I knew once… his name was Ericks… But I heard that he was called Vash the Stampede too." The name struck Rhez like a gunshot. "Vash… Vash the Stampede?" He said absently. He knew that name from somewhere… but where? The voice came back to him just then, and said something that he didn't want to hear. The girl spoke up and interrupted the voice in his head. "I said, my name is Lena, what's yours?"

The voice spoke up again, louder this time. "Kill them, kill them all. You must kill them all right now…" Rhez looked down at the knife in his hand and gripped it tight. "I can't… I can't do that…" he said to himself. Lena cocked her head to the side. "Huh? What do you mean you can't do that? Don't you have a name?" He closed his eyes, just for a second, but when he opened them, something was wrong. He looked around the room, he was standing in the middle of the bar he had just been sitting in. He was covered in blood, the knife in his hand was dripping with it. "Oh shit… oh shit what did I do?" Panic began to grip him as he spun around, looking for someone to ask. His blood ran cold when he noticed that everyone who had been in the bar with him were still there, but they were all brutally murdered. "Oh shit…" He backed away slowly, terror gripping him. He tripped over something and fell down. "What?" He looked at what he had tripped over, it was Lena's body. Rhez couldn't bring himself to say anything. He slowly stood up and back away from her bloody body. The doors swung open and an older man walked in. "Hey everyone, I got paid and I'm ready to drink it away!!!" He stopped and looked around the bar in horror. "I… Oh my god…" He looked over and saw Rhez standing there covered in blood. "It's not what it looks like I swear!" He yelled as he dropped the knife. The man turned and ran screaming out of the bar. Rhez tried to run after him, but couldn't move his body. "What have I done?"

-Stran-

After 6 or 7 hours of silent walking Vash and Stran finally top a hill looking down upon an old tattered space ship with the word seed written real big across the center of the ship. "Is this what where looking for Vash" "Yes where here follow me and stay close who knows what will find inside." Upon approaching the ship Vash has flash backs of all the ships crashing into the planets crust on that fateful day. "Vash…Vash hey are you alright." "I'm fine why." "You where spac'n out on me man is everything alright." "Yeah just old memory's"

Vash and Stran head in to the gigantic hole in the side of the ship. Shortly after entering the almost archaic looking vessel Vash drops to a knee and grabs his head. "Knives" and image of his older brother's hysterically psychotic grin and blood shot eyes flash in and out of his head. "How can this be I haven't been gone that long it's only been a couple of days a week tops" "Vash who's knives?" Asks Stran "It's time you told me what's going on. For at least 2 years now I've trained with you almost every day and once every week we go back to that town except this week and now your freaking out on me it's time you told me what's going on" Vash looks at Stran with an expression that Stran had never seen before so much pain so much sadness so…much hatred. How could one man's eyes hold so much emotion Stran thought to him self it didn't seem possible. He had never seen Vash like this before the whole time the young man had known Vash he had always been smiles and happiness, peace and love, a level of tranquility that seemed equally unbelievable. "I guess its time for me to tell you every thing. Who I was, who he was, why we've been training everyday so hard an… and who she was." Vash begins to tell Stran the story of the last hundred and thirty three years. Flash backs and tales of Knives, Wolfwood, the insurance girls, Rem, Lena, and the Gunho Guns fill the hopelessly desolate ship. After all was said Vash wiped a tear from his eye as he stared into the darkness that seemed to fill every nook and seam of the vessel as he did so he told Stran about the last chapter of the story of how he had almost killed Knives but instead took pity upon him again and instead imprisoned him in a cell where someone he trusted not to be manipulated by his tricks could watch over him. "I…I had no idea Vash why didn't you tell me sooner?" Stran said slightly annoyed but with a sympathetic tone in his voice. "I was hoping that it would never come to this Stran I thought I almost thought there for a while we could live our lives in peace and I wouldn't have to tell you about your oldest brother I thought you could have the peace full life I always wanted for you and all of humanity to have I thought the terror and treachery was over 3 years ago but as it is so blatantly obvious I was wrong. I believe some how knives got to this one I think he started the shut down sequence I think he's trying to start again. I don't want to kill him I don't want to kill any one but this time I think I might have to I think this time I actually have to kill him." As Vash finish's his sentence another tear fall's from his eye.

"Well let's get back to inspecting this thing." Vash instantly perking back up to his normal self but Stran could see that it was all just a front. The way he always did to try and make those around him more comfortable. But Stran decided to just go along. No sense in pushing the matter after all he did just have a be shock to the system more siblings, gun sling tales and O ya finding out that he's a damn near immortal super plant.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter3

-Rhez-

Tears began to run down Rhez's face as the gravity of what he had done swept over him. "More will be here soon, with their little weapons." The voice in his head said to him. "Go away! Look what you made me do!!!" Rhez screamed.

"What you have done is nothing to be ashamed of. In order for the plants to grow, the weeds must be cut." It said in it's eerily calm tone. Rhez looked around. "Nothing to be ashamed of? But… but this was wrong…"

"No little seed, in order for life to occur, death must occur. It is the balance of nature, that we kill these creatures before us. I can see that now… it is our place in this universe to eradicate them. They are nothing more than the first of many for you little seed." Rhez let the words wash over him. For some reason, the terrible feeling in his gut slowly went away. "This… is our place?" He said, saying the words that made him feel re-assured. "Yes, but you must go now. Soon more than what you can handle will be here, get different clothes and flee this place, for now." Rhez ran up the stairs and looted what clothes he could from the rooms. A black tank top and black leather pants in the first room. Black boots and gloves in the next. He used a hair tie to pull his long hair back into a tight ponytail. He tucked the tank top in and grabbed a belt with a knife scabbard that was hanging on the wall. He found the knife that it was meant for laying on the nightstand, a big bowie knife with a hand guard on it. He shoved the knife into the scabbard on the belt and ran to the bathroom and washed the blood from his face quickly. He heard a crash downstairs, and the sound of angry voices. He looked around, and saw the window. Seconds later he came crashing out of the second story window. His momentum took him across the alley way and onto the roof top of a close by one story building. He rolled when he hit and came up to his feet. He could see a mob of people in front of the bar, they hadn't noticed him over their yelling. Rhez ran in the opposite direction of them, jumping onto the next rooftop over. He peaked over the edge and saw no one in the alley. The young man jumped down and landed on his feet, his heart was racing, if they found him… how many could he take? "Blend in, move with the weeds and come to me." Rhez took a deep breath, that sounded like it would work. He stepped out into the dusty street and started walking towards the bar. He passed the mob as they rushed into the bar wielding knives and guns. He smiled to himself and kept walking.

"Why?! Why would someone do this kind of thing?!" An elderly woman sobbed to a man as she cried out her words. "Lena!!! Lena!!!" She screamed and collapsed into the man's arms. "Why? Why would someone do this?!" She screamed hysterically. The man held her and shook his head. "I don't know… if only Eriks were here…" He said to himself. Rhez started to feel torn about what killing them when he saw the old woman crying. "Hey, what the hell is going on?" A man asked as he walked by and saw the commotion. "I don't know." Rhez said quickly. The man that was holding the old lady spoke up to them. "A whole buncha' people got killed in the bar, Riley walked in and said he saw a girl holding a knife and covered in blood. They're gunna' lynch her if they find her." Rhez clenched his fist, angry that the man had thought he was a girl because of his hair. Than he smiled and put his hands in his pockets and kept walking, they were looking for a girl. His green eyes gleamed in the suns light as he made his way to the edge of town. A huge sand steamer stood waiting while people boarded it just outside of town. "Get on that, it will get you here faster." The voice said to him. Rhez started walking towards it, but the voice spoke up again. "You will need money… there." He turned to see a woman walking into an alley. Rhez looked around, than followed the woman. A minute later he came walking out of the alley with a pocketful of cash.

"Thirty six double dollars please." The man at the sand steamer ramp told him. Rhez pulled out the wad of money and put it in his hand without counting it and walked onto the steamer. The man looked at the money, sixty five double dollars. "Thank you sir, and have a nice day."

-Stran-

"Alright Stran its time to get searching here take this." Vash throws Stran a tiny ear piece. "It's a two way communicator." Stran looks at the tiny piece of equipment in amazement. Till this day he had never seen this kind of technology. "You take that way." Vash points to the darkness and into a hallway that seemed to go on forever. "If you find anything contact me right away." "Yes Vash." Stran replies with a nod of his head and start a slow jogging pace into the darkness. Vash looks around at the several other passages he could take. "Hhmm lets see which shall we take." Vash looks at the ground for a moment before seeing a stick laying on the hauls metal floor. "Ah this should do the trick round and round we go which ever way it lands we shalt not go WWWWEEEEE." Vash yells as he spins in a circle making himself dizzy then throwing the stick in the air. He regains his balance then watch's the stick land. "AWW but that's the way I wanted to go o well what's that dumb stick know." Vash says before jolting down the hall.

Stran shakes his head and smirks as he hears his bumbling idiot of a brother and instructor start getting back to his normal self. Crash crank "YA NO WHY ME"

"Vash what's happing are you ok" Stran screams into the communicator. " No I'm not fine I listened to this stick to tell me which way to go then I fell in this big hole and ripped my shirt and I'm prity sure I'm gonna get tetanus why dose every one always try to trick me." "SHUT UPP damn Vash." Stran cuts the humanoid typhoon off. You can't get tetanus or at least I don't think you can and you call me an immature baby. Now crawl your ass out of that hole and get back to looking for what ever it is you got me looking for.

Stran continues down the halls and up the stairs searching room to room. Vash finally crawls his ass of the hole and makes his way to the central power plant of the entire space station. "Vash are you there it Stran can you hear me bra Vash." What the hell is going stupid old ass technology. Stran search's around for light switch or a button looking for any source of light at all. Before Stran has time to find any switch there's a loud eardrum splitting screech as the door behind him opens and fills a small volume of the dank and musty room with a pail yellow light. Stran instinctively ducks behind the table and begins to move out and beside the wall try to get close to the figure who opened the door. Stran moved vigilantly as he stalks up behind the being walking threw the room as Stan gets with in striking distance the figure stop's and peeks over his shoulder looking around in the dark for the slightest hint of movement. The Figure pulls his gun from his side and Stran strikes knocking the weapon out of his hand and following up with another kick Stran makes contact with its general facial area knocking the tall figure on it ass and a few feet back. "Stran Stran come in can you hear me Stran." "What did you do to my brother you bastard?" "Damn it Vash what are you doing get up its me Stran what are you trying to do have us kill each other then your self righteous plan would be over real quick." "Hay I'm sorry Stran I didn't know HAY besides what are you mad about your not the one with a boot imprint on your face and a lost gun. "Look I've searched every inch of my side of the ship and found nothing strange well recently strange." "Look at that." Vash point at a spot on the floor. "Look at what" Stran replies while bending over to take a closer look. "Right there a footprint." "Eww it's covered in some kinda slimly liquid." "That's just what where looking for now we can follow the trial of our new sibling while your down there grab a sample" Vash instructs Stran. "What in the hell do you need a sample for your to dumb to analyze anything and I'm to new at this" "Don't argue with me just do it" grumbling under is voice Stran leans back down to collect a sample with a near by piece of metal shard that got broken in there little tussle. "O and Stran." Vash says. "What is it now Vash" Stran says agitatedly "Next time look before you kick." "Hu" BAAM Vash kicks Stran right in the ass knocking him foreword head first into the ground. "Ow" Stran says holding his eye and crying "Ow Vash the metal shard went in my eye I cant see" "O my god Stran I'm so sorry it was only suppose to be a joke hear let me see your eye I'm so sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry please forgive me hear let me help." Vash kneels down and leans in to inspect Stran's eye "Ha Ha Ha I got you.

"You stupid fool I was so worried ALALALALA. Vash tackles Stran and the rumble and wrestle and scream at each other camera panes out and though whole ship is shacking still able to hear there play full, idiotic rambling


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter4

-Rhez-

The sand steamer slowly started to move as the last of its passengers got on board. In the bar the mob had searched the building quickly and thoroughly. "Oh my god… Lena!" Someone said as they searched her body. "I know… it's unfortunate that she was here at the time… but…"

"No!" the man who was searching her interrupted. "You don't understand! She's still alive!" Everyone in the bar swarmed over to her as he flipped her over onto her back. "She's cut up pretty bad, and unconscious… but feel here… she has a weak pulse!"

Rhez sat looking out the window of the sand steamer as the desert went by. He had a small room somewhere near the back of the steamer, one of the only ones that was available. "Can I ask you something?" He said to himself, there was no response. "That girl back there… Lena… the way she acted… it made me feel good. But killing them all… that didn't make me feel so good… why, if it was right, why did it give me this heavy feeling of dread?" He waited for a few minutes, but he didn't hear anything. There was a loud noise in the hall, and the sound of screaming. Rhez sat up and walked to the door. He cracked it slightly and peeked out.

"Everyone out of the rooms and into the hall! Drop your valuables into the bags and hit the floor!" The door was yanked open and Rhez was pulled into the hallway by his shirt. "You deaf boy?! Give up the goods and get on the floor!" The man who yanked him out was wearing a dirty black jumpsuit and a red bandana over his mouth. He held a brown cloth bag and a small revolver, as did the two men who were identical to him. Rhez looked at the man's gun, than down the hall at the other two men. Frightened people were filling the halls and dropping their valuables into the bags. Rhez started to reach for his knife, but the man held the gun to his neck. "Don't move kid, I'll take that knife now." The man pulled the knife away and stuck it in his belt behind his back. He pushed Rhez into the crowd of people and forced him to get down. A little girl was crying a few inches away from Rhez and trying to crawl to her mother and father who were a little ways down the hallway. "I said stop moving!" One of the men stomped on her back and she cried out in pain. Her father jumped up and screamed as he ran at the man. A gunshot rang out in the hallway and the father fell to the ground, dead. The girl started to panic, screaming hysterically and crying. Rhez looked up to see who had shot, there was a man standing at the end of the hall with a gun pointed up and smoke rolling from the barrel. It was a rifle, maybe about four feet long and was lever action. It had a clip sticking out of the right side of it and the wooden handle was partially taped up. The man was wearing a long red coat with no sleeves and had a mane of wild blonde hair. He had a poorly trimmed beard and bushy eyebrows that made him look older than he probably was. "Shudda kept down." He said as he cocked his gun again and an empty shell fell out. Rhez reached over and put a hand on the girl's arm. "Calm down, there is nothing you can do in this situation." She looked at him and stopped crying. Something in his voice was so steady that she felt safer. She nodded quietly and settled down. The man yelled at the others who seemed to be his henchmen. "Alright! Move 'em up to the main area, the others are already movin all the other passengers there!" The henchmen began pulling the passengers up and pushing them down the hall with their guns. Rhez got to his feet and started moving with the others. The little girl grabbed on to his arm as they walked. He looked down at her and cocked his head to the side. "What are you doing?" He said. One of the henchmen jabbed him in the back with his gun. "No talking!" They made their way onto the large open deck area with the rest of the passengers. There were eleven henchmen, Rhez had no idea why he counted them, but it seemed important. He heard someone whisper amongst the crowd. "Damn, I think that's Vash the Stampede! The Humanoid Typhoon!" "That's not Vash you dummy!" "Yeah it is, look, red coat, spiky blonde hair, that's Vash!" The name struck Rhez again. "Vash the stampede… That name…" He thought for a second, something was pushing him to do something… but he didn't know what. He looked down at the little girl and shook his arm. "Let go." She looked up at him with her big scared eyes. "If you let go I will stop this." He said calmly. She slowly let go and nodded. Rhez moved through the frightened crowd as best he could, slowly making his way towards the edge of the deck. He spotted the henchman with his knife and got closer to him. There where close to seventy people on the deck, and only twelve total gunmen. The passengers were too scared to do anything, even though they heavily outnumbered the criminals. The henchmen's attention was spread out over a lot of people, and didn't notice one kid moving into position. Rhez was quick about it, in a flash he snatched the knife away and slit the henchman's throat. The man tried to gurgle something out, but Rhez pushed him over the side. In the commotion of the robbery none of the henchmen notice. Rhez hide the knife at his side and started to move towards another henchman. Someone in the crowd caught his eye. He looked to see a man staring at him, he had seen the attack. A look gleamed in the man's eyes and he nodded. Rhez looked on as the man whispered to someone beside him, than that person whispered to another and so on. Within minutes the crowd had begun to buzz. The first man looked back at Rhez as the man in the red coat yelled over the crowd. "Shut up! Shut up or we start shooting!" Rhez nodded and the man screamed. "Let's do it now!" He yelled and the crowd began to surge. Henchmen panicked and opened fire, but none of them got very far as they were pushed overboard. Rhez raced through the crowd towards the man with the red coat. "Shit! Get back inside! Back inside!" The leader yelled to what was left of his men. He and two others were the only two that were close enough to the doors to make it inside and lock them tight. The crowd began to cheer as they finished off the rest of their captors and surged towards the doors, trying to bash them in. The steamer started to speed up and turned for a cliff. "Oh shit, they're going to drive it off a cliff!" Someone yelled and panic quickly recaptured them. Rhez gritted his teeth and put the knife away, this was going to be more work than he wanted to do.

-Stran-

"Come on now Stran you know that was cheap." "Hey it's not my fault your such a big softy you'd think after all these years you would have learned." "Yeah yeah I've heard it all my life." Vash replies with a smirk then a soft laugh as he scratch's the back of his head.

Stran and Vash exit the musty old vessel so rightfully named the seed. "Hey look the foot prints lead off into the sand headed towards (---)." "Isn't that were that girl Lena lives." "Hey yeah your right" Vash replies excitedly. "Hey Vash" "Yeah"

He turns around and looks at Stran. "TAG your it." Stran punches Vash in the shoulder knocking him off balance then takes off running as fast as he can laughing all the while. Yelling back at Vash Stran say's "By the way your suppose to go where ever the stick doesn't ya… _dumb ass_ hehehe."

"You wait till I catch you Stran." Vash screams at the top of his lungs as he start's to run after him. "Man this body suit's a lot easier to run in compared that heavy old red trench coat I used to where although I do miss it some times." Vash thinks to him self. "Hahaaaa I'm gonna catch you Stran you wait you can't keep that pace up the entire time."

Several hours later Vash and Stran come up over a sand dune both men dirty and exhausted barley abele to stand. Repeatedly elbowing each other trying to knock the other one down. "So thirsty." Stran barley mutters the words out of his mouth. "Vash look the city" "Yippy we've found the city mumua all this walking threw the desert I'm so thirsty and hungry I could eat an entire cow, oo…ooo or some donuts, hhmm. Vash gets that glimmer back in his eye and his spirits rise. "Get out of my way Stran there mine all mine." Vash goes to push Stran out of the way and miss's falling on his face. "AW so close mumua." Vash flutters his arms and legs in there air while he lays on his belly. "Aw damn it now I have to drag the bastard into town the rest of the way. Come on." Stran grabs Vash by the collar and start's pulling the tall blonde man behind himself.

Once in town Stran sees that every body's gathered around the local bar crying and yelling at each other. "Hey what's going on around here." Vash pops up and begins looking around. "HEY I thought you were passed out from dehydration." Stran looks at Vash "Ut..o um oooaaaooo." Vash puts his hand to his head goes lip and falls to the ground "Omen where am I what happened." "Get the hell up Vash." Stran says slightly annoyed but still with a hint of laughter behind it.

"Hey every one look its Eriks…Eriks is back

"Lena…LENA IS THAT LENA" screams Vash!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter5

-Rhez-

Rhez jumped up on the railing and leaned out over the side of the sand steamer. "Shit kid, be careful!" Someone yelled to him. He ignored them as some of the others tried to break down the door. Eventually they would get it, but who knew how much time they had left. Rhez leapt off the side of the sand steamer, catching hold of a window ledge and swinging in hard, smashing through the widow. He rolled into the room and popped up to his feet, drawing his knife as he did so. He kicked in a door and moved out into the hallway. Rhez ran up the stairs and made his way towards the control room. He stopped outside of the door and listened.

"Alright, it's locked in place. If we get out of here now this thing should go flying off that cliff in five minutes or so." "Good, get the bags and let's go… this was a freakin disaster and I wanna get the hell outta here." Rhez took a step back and got ready.

One of the henchmen opened the door and stood there. "Well what the hell are you waiting for man?" The henchman slowly turned around, showing that his throat was slit. "Shit!" The leader yelled and began firing his rifle. Pumping the lever action and sending shells flying. The henchman came stumbling forward into the shots and was shot several times. Rhez pushed the henchman towards the leader, and threw his knife at the other henchman. The knife stabbed into the man's forehead and he stumbled back against the wall and slid to the ground. The leader hit the dying henchman away from his and fired at Rhez. The kid rolled forward, narrowly avoiding the shot. He pulled the knife from the henchman's forehead and threw it in one smooth motion. The knife hit the leader near his fingers and he screamed out in surprise as his gun went flying away. "You little bastard!" He screamed and held his hand. "What is your name?" Rhez said calmly. "What? Why you wanna know my name you little shit?!" He yelled. "Answer me, are you Vash the Stampede?" The man laughed and pulled a pistol from behind his back. "Yeah sure kid, I'm Vash the Stampede." He fired the pistol, but Rhez ducked the shot and closed the gap between them in a split second. The man hardly had time to react as Rhez kicked the knife up into the air, and grabbed it. He slashed once, slicing through the man's wrist and nearly cutting off his hand. "Fuck!!! Fuck, my hand! My hand!" he screamed and stumbled backwards, holding his hand. Rhez put the knife away and picked up the man's rifle. He pointed it at the criminal and cocked it. "Why are you here, and why do I know your name?" The man scrambled back, holding his bloody hand. "Fuck off kid, I aint Vash the Stampede I swear!" Rhez frowned and tightened his grip on the gun. "You just said that you were Vash the Stampede… and now you're not?"

"Shit kid I was lyin!" He yelled. Rhez gritted his teeth and slowly squeezed the trigger. "You piss me off… Die." He blew the leader's brains out all over the control room window and tinted the room red. There was movement behind him, the sound of footsteps. Rhez spun and cocked the gun, sending a shell flying. Some of the passengers rushed into the room screaming, but stopped when they saw Rhez. They looked around the room, than back to the kid in front of them. Rhez lowered the gun and slung it over his shoulder by the strap attached to it. "I'll be damned! The kid actually did it!" They all started laughing and cheering as one of them pushed past and went to the steamer's controls. He pulled a few levers and turned the boat-like steering wheel. "We're safe, the steamer is back on track!" he exclaimed. "I can't believe that you actually did it kid! By the way, you gotta name?" Rhez smiled and nodded. "Yeah, my name is Rhez." He said.

He was sitting back in his room a few minutes later, staring out the window again and watching the desert go by. There was a knock at the door and it opened up. "Hi there, Rhez was it?" It was a woman in her thirties, and a little girl stood behind her. "Oh, it's you." Rhez said as he saw the little girl. "Yes, my daughter said that you helped her before… and the captain of the steamer said that you were the one who killed the bandits…" Rhez looked at her and thought about it. "I… killed them? Yeah, I guess I did." For some reason up to that point he hadn't even thought about it, that what he had done was killing. It had felt so different from what he had done in the bar. The woman bowed and held out a metal box. "Here, please take this as a token of my appreciation. It's been in my family for generations, it's one of a kind!" He reached out and took the box, it was heavier than it looked. "What is it?" He asked. She smiled and bowed again. "Why don't you go ahead and look? I thought that it might be of better use to you than it would to me." He opened it up and looked in the box. It was a gun, a huge black and gold revolver. It was very sleek, and seemed to be too advanced for this place. He looked up and thanked her. "It's very nice." He said with a smile. She bowed again and her daughter mimicked her. The sand steamer reached its destination shortly later, and Rhez was ready to go on his way.

-Stran-

"O Lena Vash push's his way threw the crowed of people. As Vash approach's Lena's body he slows down hesitatingly taking the next few steps. Now standing over her body tears shake loose off of his cheek from the impact of his knees hitting the ground. The crowed goes silent As Vash begins to cry uncontrollably. Vash cradling Lena in his arms rocking forward and back berries is cheek into Lenas forehead hugging her so tightly and whispering to her "It's ok your in a better place now I'll find out who did this my dear sweet Lena its ok." And begins raining tears down upon the poor dead girl. Stran walks up behind Vash and lays his and on Vash's shoulder "I'm… I'm sorry brother." Stran

pause's for a few moments then pats Vash on the front of his shoulder turns away and walks out side "Were awfully sorry Eriks. We tried everything we could there was a brief moment of hope for her but it faded as quickly as it and come." Vash stood up hold Lena in both arms grasping her like a mother dose her first baby child he quietly exit the inn not saying a word not crying not sobbing it was as if he was a blank canvas. Vash continues to walk into town, the people inside the bar begin to cry again as if the could feel his pain. Following closely behind Stran remains quiet knowing that trying to talk to him would be no good so he Stran just continued to follow along silently. After walk all the way threw town and out the other side Vash finally stops. "This is where she lived I want to let her grandmother see her one last time before I put her body to rest. Stran opens the door with one hand while still grasping Lena with the other. Upon entering the house Vash set Lena on the couch and headed for grandmas room "knock knock" Vash taps on the door, after a few seconds Vash push's the door open slightly "Grandma it's me Eriks." Vash opens the door a little wider and steps in. He looks around the room and spots the old lady in her bed. Vash walks over and taps her on the shoulder very lightly." "Grandma" Vash shakes her shoulder. His head knew the truth but is heart wouldn't let him accept it. Tears built up around his eye's again taking a few deep breaths Vash kissed the old women on her cheek and whispered into hear ear don't worry I'll fix everything you'll see I wont let this happen again. Vash stood up and walked out the room shortly after he returned again this time carrying Lena. He laid the girl in the bed beside her grandmother and made the same promise to her sweet dreams girls I'll never forget you. Vash walks over to the nightstand and grabs the oil lap on it. Unscrew the lid Vash begins to empty the lamps contence on the floor around the bed. Walk toward the door Vash turn and drawls his gun. The humanoid typhoon close's his eyes and takes a moment of silence before pulling the trigger and igniting the fluid. Out side Stran hears the gun shot and runs into the house taking a spilt second to look around the room he sees an orange glow coming from one of the rooms. "Vash" he screams and runs into flame engulfed room. "What the hell are you doing Vash!" "There dead both of them are dead the old women had nothing left to live for." "I'm sorry Vash but we've got to get out of here"

Stran and Vash the stampede walk out of the burning house heading back to the inn "We have to find out who did this." "I know Vash I know"

Back at the inn Vash walks back in and begins intimidating questioning everyone "WHO WAS IT" Vash screams at the groveling towns folk. "We don't know weve searched the entire city and turned up nothing, closest we can figure she skipped out on the sand steamer." "It was a girl." Vash says to himself that can't be right "Where was it heading!?" "It was on its way to (---) it left maybe and two or 3 hours ago" Vash turns around to Stran and hands him a piece of paper go to these co-ordinance you'll find a crater in the center of the crater dig down about 3 iall's and bring me the chest." "But Vash… we've never been separated before." "Its ok Stran your strong and fast I have faith in you bring me the chest I'll be in (---) when you get back." Vash turns and runs off into town. "Welp here I go all on my own yep I'm all grown up now here I go all by myself ." Stran looks side to side. "Damn you Vash I don't wanna be on my own You BAAASTTTTTAARRD!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter6

-Rhez-

"Why don't you stay at the hotel for the night, my compliments." Rhez shook his head and smiled. "No, I can't. But thank you very much for offering." The man held his hands together and bowed. "Oh please, if you're in too much of a hurry to rest, than at least let us cook you a good meal." The man was one of the ones that had been on the sand steamer, and was apparently pretty well off. "Really, I don't understand why you people are so grateful, I didn't do much." Rhez said. The man smiled and shook his head. "No, no, you don't understand. If you wouldn't have stopped those guys, who knows what would have happened? This kind of thing happens all the time, but no one can do anything about it! You saved the lives of all those people, if not because of physical danger, than because you gave them hope." Rhez thought about it. "You're thinking too much into this… although I am hungry." The man smiled and took Rhez by the arm. "That's the spirit! Right this way!" They went into a restaurant and everyone cheered when they walked in. Rhez thought to himself as the celebration went on around him. "These people get so excited over the simplest things…"

The meal wasn't bad, he ate it quietly as everyone around him drank and sang. It looked like these people were just waiting for an excuse to party, he thought. It seemed like he was in there for hours, eventually he got up and made his way towards the door. "Hey, where you goin?" A drunken voice asked him. "I have to get some air." He said with a smile and walked out.

"Kill them, kill them all." The voice was back in an instant. Rhez dropped to his knees as a stabbing pain in his head sliced in like a knife. He gritted his teeth and held his forehead as the pain washed over him. "No…. No, I won't do it!" He screamed as he forced himself to stand up. Rhez stumbled out into the street, holding his head and trying to fight off the pain. Suddenly it stopped, in a flash it was gone, and the voice said nothing. Rhez looked up and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"I have to get out of here… I have to get away from these people." He looked up and saw the figure of a man walking into town. But he looked like more than a man, he looked like some kind of demon. He was a black silhouette with glowing blue eyes, illuminated in red by the setting suns. Far off in the distance behind him a sandstorm was raging, almost as if it was an extension of his fury. Something inside of Rhez seemed to snap. His blood ran cold and he found it impossible to move. He mouthed the words, but no sound came out. "Vash…" He finally said. "Vash?! Vash the Stampede…"

"VASH THE STAMPEDE!!!!!!" Someone behind him overheard him and yelled. It was as if the floodgates had opened, and people started swarming out of the bar and screaming, scattering all over town as fear struck them from his mere name. Rhez nearly fell as someone ran into him and scurried past. "Vash…" He said again absently. He clenched his fists and his slowly started to move. He pulled the rifle from his back and cocked it. He lifted it to his shoulder and took aim. "Stop! Stop right there Vash the Stampede!" Vash kept walking, his hands at his sides and balled up into fists. "YOU! YOU'RE THE ONE!!!" Vash screamed as he got closer, there was no explaining it, he just knew. He started screaming and ran towards Rhez. Rhez fired his rifle, cocked, fired again. He shot again and again, pumping the gun rapidly as shells flew from it in a stream. Vash kept coming, running in a straight line, yet somehow dodged all of the bullets. Rhez started screaming and flipped the rifle around, holding it like a club. He swung it hard as Vash reached him. The rifle smashed into pieces over Vash's left arm as he blocked it and brought his right fist up in an uppercut. The blow hit Rhez under the chin like a sledgehammer and sent him flying backwards into the air. Vash grabbed his foot and swung him around, sending him flying through the air and crashing into a building. Rhez went smashing through the window and destroyed a table and some chairs on his way in. Vash ran towards the building, but Rhez came flying out of the window with his knife drawn. Vash caught the knife in his left hands and snapped the blade off. He swung his foot up in a brutal spin kick that sent Rhez bouncing off the ground like a rag doll and rolling down the street. Rhez rolled to the side as Vash blew a chunk of ground away with his hidden arm machine gun. Rhez pulled his new revolver from the back of his pants and fired at Vash. Vash hesitated for a split second as he saw the gun. The bullet grazed is shoulder and he fired his machine gun again as he took cover behind a nearby car. Rhez rolled out of the way and hide behind the corner of the nearby building. Vash popped up from behind the car and shot his handgun. Rhez ducked back, than leaned out and shot back. "Why, why did you do it?!" Vash screamed as he fired another shot. Rhez gritted his teeth and peaked out. Did he know? If they were looking for a girl, how did he know it had been him? Rhez dashed out from behind the corner and leapt over the car, firing his gun as he did. "Shit!" He yelled as he realized that no one was there. Rhez spun around, but the last thing he saw was the butt of Vash's gun smashing into his face before he blacked out.

-Stran-

"Where the hell am I." Stran says to himself while walking threw the desert looking for any sign of direction. Heading off into the direction of a near cliff. "O MY god I've never seen anything like it before. Stran says as he tops the cliff an unforgettable sight being revealed to him. Lush green grass, an enormous apple tree, and a few scattered bush's here and there all of which was lining the inside circumference of a gigantic crater.

Stran excitedly begins running down the cliff towards this paradise screaming, hooping, and hollering. Not two seconds later in true Vash the stampede style Stran trips over a rock while running full boar Stran begins roll vilantly down the cliff now screaming in terror and yet at the same time there also a hint of laughter. By the time he reach's the bottom he lands belly down on the tall green grass. "O my this grass it so soft and plush." Stran says as he scoots his face across the grass trying to hit every square inch until finally running his strait into the hard bark of the apple tree falling back down again on his ass he rubs his head "Aw what a lovely neighborhood." And just as he finish's his sentence four of five apples fall making a repeated thud thud thud thud "oooooOWwwwww that hurt this place is kinda dangers though no place to raise the kids and the little miss's and look there's no schools O my poor wife will have to home school the kids teach all day cook all evening and well at night OOoo ALL NiGhT LoNg aALL nIGhttt he he." Stran says as he looks side to side then arcs his elbows out and puts one fist on his waist and another in the giving the peace sign " IT SHALL BE DONE AS I COMMAND IT." "You sound just like him ya know." A tall blonde man steps out from be hind the tree. Scaring the shit out of Stran he leaps off his ass strait up four feet and throws one of the apples directly at the man. Catching the apple right before it hits his face. "Wo there budy thanx for the apple but next time try not to beem me with it."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter7

-Rhez-

Rhez slowly opened his eyes and held is head. "Damn it that hurt." He sat up and looked around, he was in a pew. The pew was one of many in the large church he was in. A sleepy light drifted in from the big stained glass windows and illuminated the church. Than he remembered, Vash. Rhez jumped up and started to leave, but found that he was chained to the pew. "What the hell?" Someone walked up behind him and sighed. "Well, you do have quite the knack for bad language. Rhez turned around and saw a priest standing there and smiling. He was dressed in preacher clothes, but with a long black trench coat. His hair was medium length; it was slicked back and was black with grey down the sides. "Who are you?" He said with contempt. The priest sat down a couple of pews away from him. "I am a friend of Vash. He has asked me to help him deal with you." Rhez sat back down and frowned. "Deal with me?" He asked. The priest nodded and spoke. "Yes, my name is Tobias Granz, I knew the late Nicholas Wolfwood, and met Vash at his funeral." Rhez pulled at his chains and looked at Granz. "Unchain me now and I will make your death quick." The priest frowned and stood up. "Vash was right, it's as if you know not what you have done. You threaten a priest, a man of God with death, and yet there is no remorse in your eyes." Rhez shot up and pulled his chains to their tightest. "And you know not of what I am about to do priest." Granz smiled and shook his head. "If you think that you can intimidate me, you are very wrong. I am a soldier of God, and nothing can sway me from my path." Rhez stared him in the eyes and his anger started to get the better of him. "You do not want war with me, priest. Because the only thing you have on your side is a three letter word." The priest frowned again and reached into his pocket. "Vash asked if I would restrain you until he could calm himself down… so I don't think he'll mind if I restrain you a bit more." He pulled a small black cross out of his pocket and held it out. He pressed a button on the back of it and electricity jolted off of the tip and shocked Rhez. He screamed and dropped to the ground convulsing. Granz laughed and put the cross back in his pocket. "See now, isn't that better?" He said as he laughed and walked away. "I'll pray for you now." He said as he walked away whistling.

-Stran-

"Who are you" asked Stran. "Just a traveler looking for a treasure" replied the tall blonde man. "What do ya know me to" Says Stran as he looks the traveler. "Your clothing look all most identical to my brother's" "That's because me and Vash come from the same ship." Stran looks up at the sky and puts a finger under his bottom lip. "O yeah welp Mr. Traveler guy person I got to get digging so I'll see ya later I'm kinda in a hurry." "Well then let me help you maybe where after the same thing" "OK" Stran says excitedly at the thought of doing less work. Stran grabs a hand full of the apples that clonked him on the head. Stran walks the edge of the crater turns back towards the middle and starts passing off "1…2…3…4…"till finally reaching 43 "Well this is the spot." Stran look up towards the man as he has a shovel thrown to him. "Hey a shovel thanx." Forty five minutes of digging later Stran sticks his shovel into the ground to pull up another pile of dirt "THUD" the two men look at each other then kneel down and start whipping away the rest of the dirt reveling a large wooden hatch. Stran reach's down to pull the door open "CLINK CLINK" "Its locked Stran says while looking at his new friend. Stran looks back down at the door and shrugs "well I suppose the situation is important." Stran grabs the handles again and gives the door a hard jerk ripping the doors and several of the concrete blocks it was attached to out of the ground "Well you're a strong one arnt you." Rolling his eyes and whistling Stran rocks back and forth on his heel's "Yeah I guess I don't know my own strength some times. "Shall we" "Yes we shall" "After you" "No no I insist after you" "NO no no after you I insist" "Ok on three we both go." "Ok" "1…2…" The blonde man push's Stran inside and he stumbles down the steps landing face first on the bottom step. "MAN what happened are you ok in there that was one strong wind." "Yeah thanx a lot FRIEND." Stran looks up at the room "wWOOWw" Stran says to him self "Hey you got to get down here and see this its amazing." Stran surveys the room there's racks and racks of every kind of gun semi shotgun full auto rifles sawed off's everything and below "There got to be at least seven hundred and at least sixty, fifty five gallon drums of ammunition " Stran says while walking to the other side of the room. "hey look a string " Stran pulls at the string dangling in the middle of the room "VOOSH VOSH VOOSH" several bright white lights turn on and shine onto the back wall "Holy crap look at these" Stran says while looking over the wall there's was a very long sniper rifle, a long golden pistol, there was a katana, there where a short stubby pair of pistols, the remains of a wrinkled up saxophone. In the middle of the wall was a giant metal cross with a long red coat on it above the cross was two giant revolvers one chrome one jet black. "These must be the ones Vash wanted me to get. Stran grabs the red coat and folds it into a roll sticking it in a near by cylindrical sack. He wrapped the cross in a white cloth sheet the was hanging off the back of it and buckled it up tight and set it by the bag. Stran hesitated for a second as he reached for the two giant revolvers he felt that something was wrong but couldn't tell what it was. Maybe Vash was in trouble, maybe the city was in trouble. He went over several scenarios in his but just couldn't place the feeling. Stran pulled the guns off the walls and hooked them to some straps on the side of his legs underneath his coat he picked up the cross and threw it over his back letting one of the straps rest on his right shoulder and go under his left arm.

Finally he garbed the sack and puts some ammo in with the coat for the revolvers. Walking back to the steps he turns and looks around the room again. Turning back around and walking up the steps he sees his new blonde friend sitting at the side of the hole eating an apple "Did ya find what you where looking for" "Yep I suppose I did" Replied Stran. The blonde man reached down into the hole helping Stran back out. "Well thanx for helping me dig. "The two guns you found in there do have them on you" Stran stopped and at that moment he knew what that feeling was he knew that he had been tricked. "Knives" "Your as ignorant as Vash is" Said Knives. Stran spun around and drew the to revolvers pointing them at the blonde mans face. "Was dose my family always have to point guns at me. O-well" Knives raise's his hand and snaps his fingers.

Instantaneously Stan begins scream in pain as parts of the guns fly off. The internals of the gun begin to spin and electricity begins to pulse from it. Stran sleeves rip as his arms double in size his arms turn a dull gray, his shoulder's bulk out and Stran continues to scream as the pain continues growing with each passing moment by the time its all done Stran stands there with two hulking gun arms grey in color at the shoulders the base of the guns are slotted, covered in feathers and a brilliant yellow glow flares from them at the end of the barrels a glowing ball of energy and electricity swirls and sparks. "These are our angel canon's young one these are the weapons we'll use to clens this earth."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter8

-Rhez-

Rhez looked around the church cautiously, he didn't see Granz anywhere. He reached down into his boot and pulled out a tiny two shot gun that he had taken off of the body of one of the henchmen from the steamer. He pressed it up against his chains and fired, breaking the chain. "Alright…" He said to himself as he pulled the chains off and took off out of the church. He reached the door, but heard footsteps outside. "Shit… gotta find another way out of here." He moved into what he thought was a closet, but saw that a ladder led up to a hatch on the ceiling. "A roof exit?" Rhez said to himself. He quickly climbed the ladder and opened the hatch, crawling out onto the roof. "You!" He said in surprise when he saw that Vash was already sitting up there. Vash didn't look back at him, he was just staring off into space and crying.

"It's all falling apart… I don't know how I let this happen…" He said as he wiped is face. "I have a terrible feeling, something doesn't seem right with Stran… The fifth moon has a couple extra scars tonight…did I send him right to Knives?" The name Knives struck Rhez the same as Vash had at first. "Who is Knives?" Rhez said. Vash spun around and looked at him like he hadn't known he was there. "I… You're up… how did you get loose?" Rhez pointed his little gun at Vash. "I'm resourceful I guess." Vash smiled and pointed Rhez's own revolver at him. "I thought that this was the real thing at first, but it isn't. It's very close though, expert craftsmanship and a nice feel to it." Vash started walking towards Rhez and kept the gun up. "Stop… I said stop right there! I'll shoot!" Rhez said as he backed up a step. "Lena would want me to forgive you… and Rem wouldn't want me to kill you… So there is only one option that I can think of." Vash stopped when he was so close that the guns almost touched. He flipped the revolver in his hand and pointed the handle at Rhez. "Take it, may it be a burden to you as mine was to me." Rhez hesitated, than took the revolver. "You have a lot of sins to make up for little brother." Vash said with a slight smile. "Little brother? Are you… my family? Are you the one who was talking to me? No… you couldn't be, you're to different, and that voice told me to kill… you don't seem like you like killing." Vash looked into Rhez's eye as tears swelled up in his. He reached out and started hugging him and crying. "Oh little brother, I knew you weren't evil! I just knew it!" Rhez tried to pry himself away but couldn't. "Get… Off… Of… ME…" Rhez gasped out. Vash let him go and immediately went back to his sad self. "But this means… that Knives is back… there's no doubt about it now." "Who is Knives?" Rhez asked. Vash walked away and sat down on the edge of the building. "I guess there's a lot I need to let you in on…"

For the next couple of days Vash and Rhez talked and trained together. Vash lightened up drastically as they spent more time together. Rhez felt different now, Vash had explained to him why killing was wrong, even if Rhez didn't totally buy it. They were staying in the nearby hotel, the townspeople had gratefully put them up after Rhez told them that Vash wasn't Vash the Stampede. After spending a few minutes with him, they all believed the lie. One morning Rhez wandered down the stairs, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Morning Rhez." Someone said cheerfully. "Good morning." He said as he walked past. He walked out of the hotel and outside as the sun stretched over the horizon. A glimmer of light caught his eye on the porch and a slight movement followed it. Rhez walked over towards it and realized that it was a spider web. A tiny butterfly was fluttering around, trying to free itself from the web. The spider slowly crawled out and made its way towards its prey. Rhez watched as the spider got closer. He reached out towards the spider to crush it. A hand shot out from behind him and grabbed his arm. "I told you Rhez, no more killing." Vash said from behind him. Rhez looked back at him and frowned. "And I told you, that doesn't make any sense." Vash pulled him away from the spider web and stared in his eyes. "No more killing." Vash said again. "In order for the butterfly to survive, the spider must die. If you take the butterfly away, the spider will starve, if you do nothing, the butterfly dies. It's better to kill those who would kill others before they can commit the act." Rhez said as he pulled away from Vash. Vash's face took a serious tone as he thought back to so long ago, when Knives had said the same thing to him. "I'm leaving Vash, I have something to do." Rhez said as the walked away. Vash nodded and smiled. "I understand that you need to leave, but I'm coming with you." Rhez spun around and pulled his revolver. He fired once, almost grazing Vash's face. Vash turned to see that Rhez had shot the spider. "Follow if you want brother, but you may not like what you see." Vash balled up his fists and stared at Rhez. "Where are you going?" Rhez put his gun away and looked out over the town. "Someone got inside of my head… he forced me to kill innocent people… I don't like being controlled Vash, I'm going to kill Knives." Vash didn't say anything as Rhez walked back into the hotel. A few minutes later he came walking out, wearing the white coat that the local tailor had given him. He slung a long rifle over one shoulder and a bag over the other. "How do you know you can find him Rhez?" Vash said to him. "I can feel him Vash, I know where he is." Rhez started walking out of town without looking back. Vash stood there, shaking his head as he watched Rhez leave.

Reverend Tobias Granz grinned as he watched Rhez leave town from inside of his church. He walked to the back and opened up a drawer. He reached into it and pulled out what looked like a futuristic cell phone. He punched a few numbers and held it to his ear. "The second one is on his way now sir." He waited a second, than heard a confirmation on the other end. "Yes sir, I will follow him right away." He put the phone in his pocket and smiled. "Praise god in his infinite wisdom."

-Stran-

"Stran…Stran…" Knives slap's Stran a couple times in the face. Stran's eyes begin to flutter then slowly open. "Hu whats what." Stran lay there chained to a bed. "Vash." Stran say's while trying to look around threw his blurry eye sight. "Vash…Vash are you there." "Nope there's no Vash here only me Knives." Stran's eyes pop wide open and horrid image's flash before his eyes as his vision clears. Instantaneously realizing what was going on Stran jumps to his feet on top of the bed breaking the chains that where binding him to the bed not even realizing they where there. "Well you are a strong one arnt you those chains where meant to lift sand steamer forges." "WHERE AM I KNIVES" Stran screams. "Calm down Stran your fine you've been a sleep for a five days now."

Stran looks at knives then looks down at his arms. "What where those things Knives."

Well they where originally designed as Angel Canons but some how you manipulated them turned them into something new and the power output how did you get it so high that was at least fifty if not hire I'm surprised you lived. Gigantic blades that shot long streaks of energy. It was all quit magnificent." "Where are we." "About a three day walk to July." "Vash said you were paralyzed and restrained." "I'm sure Vash told you a lot of things that." Stran cuts off Knives. "He told me that you where a ruthless killer who had no remorse and no conscious you deserved what you got." "Now Stran that's not true I was only trying to save us save this planet, save our kind this planet belongs to us." "No this planet belongs to every one, no one has the right to kill anyone." "You have to kill the spider to save the butterfly Vash lives his life one contradiction at a time. Have you ever seen his body his wretchedly disfigured body. By the expression on his face you have did he tell you what it was from did he tell you what happened to him." "Vash said he was crossing a mountain top and there was an earth quake and he fell down the side of it all the way down and woke up in a sand worm field. Knives looks at the ground and chuckles "I'm sorry little brother but that's a lie those scars on his body are from the very maggots he try's to save people fear him so they shoot him there was a time when some one even made him get naked in the middle of town and walk around like a dog these people are scum why would you save something like that WHY STRAN WHY." Knives eyes grow large and his pupil's shrink. "That cant be true Vash wouldn't lie to me he only wants to help people." "Listen to me Stran Vash isn't right about this stay here with me for a couple days your free to leave when ever you wish but please consider it. I cant believe I'm even thinking about this I know I shouldn't I know he's lying I should kill him now where he stands why…why cant I do it I know I should. Stran thinks to himself his fist clench and his eyes tighten blood begins dripping from his nose and the corner of his lips as he clinch's down. "Fine I'll stay" Stran's face turns back to white and he takes a deep breath as the blood leaves his face and he calms down shaking a little bit from the relief. "But I swear if I think your up to anything I'll fucking kill you I'm not as soft as Vash is I will kill you Knives." "Wonderful Stran here come with me you most be starving."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter9

-Rhez-

Rhez took a drink from his canteen and stopped to look back. The desert had turned into hardpan a few miles back but it wasn't any nicer, just lacked sand. He started walking again, and as he topped a hill he was surprised to see a forest. In truth it looked like it had been a forest at one time, but the life had been ripped from it long ago. The trees were gnarled and blackened, and not a single one of them had a leaf on it. Rhez doubted that any of them were sill alive, just dead husks of bark and rotted wood. The forest stretched for as far as the entire valley it was in, like a sea of black twisted bodies. Rhez walked down into the valley, the shadows from the trees giving some relief from the sun, but not much. The smell of burnt wood hung in the air like it had been that way for a long time. Rhez walked through the black forest for a while, it made him uneasy, like something was watching him. He stopped and listened, had he heard…? Rhez spun and drew his revolver, shooting and blowing a hole in one of the trees. Spiders spilled out of the hole and swarmed all over the ground. Rhez sighed and shook his head. "Damn nasty things…" He said to himself and turned back around. Out of nowhere a thick string of webbing hit his revolver, and yanked it out of his hand and pulled it somewhere back into the trees. "Shit!" Rhez whipped the rifle around off of his back and dove behind a tree. He cocked the rifle and took a deep breath. "Who are you?!" Rhez shouted out from behind the tree. There was no response, only what sounded like a near silent clicking. Rhez listened to the sound, but couldn't figure out what it was. His rifle was ripped out of his hands by webbing from above him suddenly. Rhez rolled away and looked up, but all he saw was a blur moving away through the trees. "Damn it you bastard, what the hell are you?" Rhez heard the clicking again, and he hit the ground just as something smashed the tree he was behind in half. He rolled to the side as a huge spider leg came crashing down at him, piercing the ground as it narrowly missed him. Rhez jumped to his feet and spun around and came face to face with his attacker. "What the fuck?" He stumbled backwards putting a few feet between him and his attacker. It was a man, a man in a tight black body suit, with dull metal anklets and bracers. His face was covered by a dull metal mask that had six circular black glass eye holes. He had black greasy hair that hung down over the mask wildly and four robotic spider legs sprouted from his back and suspended him off the ground. The man cocked his head to the side and gurgled under his mask. "You're in my way freak, and I really don't appreciate being unarmed." The spider legs moved the man forward a few steps as his fingers twitched in anticipation. Rhez smiled and held his arms out. Guns popped out of his sleeves and slid into his hands with a wrist movement. "Guess you forgot a couple." Rhez said as he opened fire. He emptied his semi-automatic pistols into the man, bullets tearing through flesh and ricocheting off the metal. For a second the man didn't move, but than one of his spider legs slashed violently at Rhez. He ducked the attack as it smashed multiple trees to pieces. Rhez flipped backwards as another swipe from the spider legs narrowly missed him. The man cracked his neck as Rhez rolled away from another attack that destroyed another tree. "Bastard didn't even slow down!" Rhez said to himself as the pistols slid back into his sleeves. He reached under the back of his coat and pulled out a sawn off. He rolled out from the tree he was behind as it exploded into splinters after a spider leg crashed through it. "Try and shake this off freak!" He yelled as he fired two shots from the sawn off. A chunk of the man's shoulder blew away and the other shot clanged off of a spider leg, only denting it. Rhez cursed and reloaded as he dodged another attack. "Why don't you just…" He was cut off in mid sentence as the man shot spider webs from his wrists and covered Rhez. He hit the ground and rolled away, his arms stuck to his body. The assassin scurried over to him on the spider legs as his fingers twitched again. He stopped, something wasn't right. He looked down to see a grenade lying on the ground. "Just call it bug spray." Rhez said and rolled further away. The explosion rocked the forest, destroying trees and sending dirt and dead wood flying everywhere. Rhez climbed to his feet as the smoke cleared and managed to get to his knife and cut his way out of the webbing. Rhez looked around and shook his head. "Did the freak get away?" He sighed and put the sawn off away as he started to look for his other guns.

-Stran-

-Two Weeks Earlier-

Several days have now passed and Stran and Knives continue there ethical debates. Stran's attitude towards Knives has lighted up some as he begins to realize just how right Knives might be. After all humans where destroying every thing that found including each other. That had to be the same reason they left there old planet now there working on this new one. Knives continually more then nudging Stran in the direction he wanted him to go in. Stran thought that he was coming to these conclusions on his own but in the back of his mind he never stopped questioning Knives motives.

The days continued to pass and slowly Stran stopped questioning Knives and they began to train together this was as much a benefit to Knives as it was to Stran as Knives had not had much hand to hand combating skill's to begin with letalone in the past three years. For hours at a time they would train eight nine some times ten hours strait.

A week or so later a group of people should up at the compound six men and two women. The first two men looked identical both of them shoulder length brown hair red vest's and knee length brown duster's and brown pants. Another was a tall man with wild black hair, he wore a black metal mask with six black red glass eyes. He had a long closed black trench coat and a large hump on his back. There was a priest, middle aged with slicked back black hair with grey down the sides. He absently spun a small black cross in his hand and whistled a hymn to himself. A stunning beauty stood next to him with her shoulder length blonde hair cut precisely and held by a red hair clip. She had a tight red dress on, with a short black coat on overtop of it, and acted like this was a waste of her time. The last one was a very tall girl black and red hair put up into long pig tails with bangs that came down past her eyes which where blue and brown. She wore all white cloths that looked much like Stran's but she wore a long purple coat that covered her arms and buttoned at the neck and below her waist leaving her bear torso completely visible. Stran immediately took notice to her looking into her eyes every chance he had.

He had become so quickly infatuated with her that he all together forgot about Vash and why he had left in the first place. Some times late at night Stran would lay in bed completely worn out from a long day of training with Knives and the new recruits he would just lay there trying to figure out what it was that had been bothering him there was a sense of un fulfillment in his life but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"Yes master I understand" the girl in pigtails replied to knives as he turned his back and returned to looking out the window. The girl walked to Stran room on the other side of the compound and knocked on his door. A second or so the knob tuned and Stran opened the door. "Tia…what are you doing here" "May I come in Stran." "Stran paused for moment "Yeah sure come in."

Stran opened the door the rest of the way and stepped aside. Tia walked in and stood for a second before sitting on the bed. "I've seen you stare at me Stran." He quickly tries to say something but be fore he can open his mouth all the way Tia cuts him off. "It's ok Stran I like you to… I have since I got here. Will you come sit on the bed with me." Stran looks up at her from the ground and rubs the back of his head. "Um…um…sure I guess." Stran walks over to the bed and sits down on the other side. Tia crawls to the top on her hands and knees and sit down with her back against the wall. With Stran's back towards her Tia puts her hand on Stran's chest and leans him back on herself putting his head in her lap. Stran becomes very nervous and bites his lip. "Your so tense Stran calm down every thing will be alright." Tia tells him as she strokes her hand threw Stran's long hair. "It's…it's just that I feel like some things wrong a cant tell what it is I'm sure I'd have gone insane trying to figure it out by now if it wasn't for you. Some times I feel like my inside's are being ripped to piece's trying to figure this out I think I'm going." Tia puts her finger over Stran's lips silencing him. "Sssshhhh every thing will be good from now on, now we have each other." Tia says before putting her hand on his cheek and leaning in to Stran's face to kiss his lips. Stran puts his hand on the side of Tia's head covering her cheek and hiding his fingers in her hair making her stop for a second while he stared into her eyes then letting her go and closed the distance between there face's. They laid there nose to nose for what seemed like an eternity before Stran finally put his lips over Tia's bottom lip kissing her gently. Tia removed Stran's coat as he unbuttoned Tia's long red trench.

"Yes soon everything will be ready." Says Knives as he looks out upon a vast desert landscape watching the second sun set.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter10

-Rhez-

-Present-

Tobias Granz sat in the back of a bar wit his feet propped up on a table. He whistled to himself and sipped at his whiskey. A girl in a red dress walked into the bar, and every head turned. She slowly made her way towards Granz. The men in the bar watched her as she slunk along. They were hypnotized by her, and she loved it. "You just cannot help yourself with sins of flesh can you?, Elle the Heat." Elle sat down and smiled at Granz. "Of course I can Tobias, but what fun would that be? Look at every man in here, they can't keep their eyes off of me, even the women half the time. So when my sweat heat burns through them, they never see it coming." Granz smiled and shook his head. "Have you heard anything from Freak?" She said. "Unfortunately not my dear, but he is quite the resourceful lad, I have faith that he will come through." Elle grinned and crossed her arms. "I hope that bug got squashed, he gives me the creeps." Granz got up and finished his whiskey. "Well, if he did you're up next… he should be coming by here some time soon if he still lives… be ready Elle." He walked out of the bar without looking back. Elle looked up to see that a few of the lesser morally inclined men had something darker on their minds. "Well hello there boys." She said as she lit a match.

Rhez walked into the small town gratefully, he had been walking for a while. A column of smoke arose up in the air as he passed a smoldering bar that looked like it had been burnt to the ground recently. Rhez got a bad feeling about this place, he didn't see any people anywhere. He walked into the only other bar in town, one that doubled as a brothel. The bartender looked up sheepishly as Rhez walked in. There where a few other people in the bar, all of them sitting quietly and minding their own business. "How old are you kid?" The bartender asked skeptically. "Old enough to know why you can smell this place from the street." Rhez said disrespectfully. "Sounds old enough to me." Someone said from behind him. Rhez turned around to see who he assumed was one of this establishment's more specialized employees. "I'm Elle, and you look lonely." She said as she walked across the room and put a hand on his shoulder. He was entranced by her moves, Rhez hadn't seen anyone like her before. She put a finger over his lips and shushed him. "I'll tell you what, you look like the caring type… how about we have a little fun, I may let you go for free if you make it worth my time." Rhez started to say something, but the bartender spoke up. "Guns first kid. No triggers downstairs, no blades if you have 'em either." Rhez took the rifle off of his back and sat it on the counter. He pulled his revolver out and threw it up there. Rhez reached down into his boot and pulled out a two shot pistol, than took both guns out of his sleeves. He sat the sawn off up onto the bar with the rest of them and than dropped a few grenades there too. The bartender shot a quick look at Elle and she was just as surprised as he was. Rhez sat his knife up on the counter too and shrugged. "That's all." He said. Elle smiled and led him downstairs, Rhez was totally in a trance from her, he hardly noticed that he was unarmed. She led him down to a little room that only had a bed and a nightstand. She handed him a glass and poured something into it. "Have a drink, it'll relax you." She said. Rhez gulped the drink down and sat down on the bed. Seconds later he collapsed back, heavily sedated. He cursed himself, how could he be so damn stupid? The last thing he heard before losing consciousness was Elle's laughter.

Elle picked up her phone when it rang. She was in a dark stone room, somewhere below the bar. "Hello?" She said into the phone. "No, he hasn't come by here yet, but I'm keeping an eye out for him." She lied into the phone as she looked over at the unconscious Rhez who was now chained to the wall. "Understood, no I haven't heard from Freak yet either… ok." She said and hung up the phone. "Now I get to have a little fun." She said to herself as she made her way towards Rhez.

On the other end, Granz turned off the phone. He gritted his teeth as he leaned against a tree and thought to himself. Someone came over the hill that led into the little valley. Granz turned to see who it was, his eyes widening at the sight. "Oh shit, Freak!" He ran over to the man with spider legs coming out of his back that was making his way towards him. His normal legs were gone up to the knees, his body was torn and broken, his clothing hanging off in places, revealing his pale skin. His metal mask was cracked down one edge, and two of the eye holes were broken. His entire left arm was gone, he barely seemed alive as his spider legs stumbled him along.

-Stran-

"Stran get out here right away we have a problem it's the freak his hurt badly get out here right away." "I'll be right out." Stran says while setting down the communicator. "I'll be right back Tia its freak he's hurt badly." Stran says as he runs out of the room sliding on his white shirt and black trench. "What happened what happened to him." Stran screams as he runs out to Freak and Granz. "O HOLY SHIT what happened to him." Stran comes to sliding stop at the sight of one of his men so badly tattered and torn.

"Freak.. Freak can you here me freak." "Master…I… I…he wa…ss to fa…fa…fast." Mumbles and shrieks Freak while blood runs down from underneath his mask. "WHO who was to fast who did this to you." Stran says while holding the atrocity that was left of a man. "It… it was Rh." The man was cut off by a jolt of electricity running over his whole body. Stran still holding onto Freak not even acknowledging the fact that he was having hundreds of thousands of volts running threw his body. Granz's eyes widen behind his glasses in amazement at the resilients of Stran. "What whats happing to him." "It must be his pack malfunctioning." Replies Granz. Stran turns Freaks body over and ripps off his pack and robotic spider leg. The electricity stops and freaks body stops convulsing Stran lets go of him and rises to his feet with smoke rolling off his body. "Is he going to be ok." Granz reach's down and feels his neck pulling his finger away right away "Got damn hes hot he looks at his finger as they blister up. A couple seconds later Granz try's again. "Its faint but there's a pulse get him inside quick." Stran picks Freak up and carry's him back into the compound. "KNIVES!!!!! Stran screams. Knives walks into the room where Stran had taken him and looks at Freaks body laying on the table. "Yes Stran." "What do you mean yes look help him he's going to die." "And." Says knives as he stairs into Stran's eyes. "AND that's all you have to say AND…and save him I don't want him to die save him Knives." "Why hes weak what ever he was doing he lost remember some times you have to kill the spider to save the butterfly apparently the butterfly got away again. Stran's eyes widen and pupils dilate Stran can feel the back of his brain pulse as a memory fights to reacquire why why dose this seem familiar Stran thinks to him self while his eyes shoot from side to side sweat starts rolling from his brow "O fine then have it your way Stran but not again he is after all just human. A hole in the wall opens up and Knives grabs Freak walking into the room Granz follows "It will be fine Stran will make him better then before you'll see a couple of days and he'll be good as new." Granz turns back around and follows Knives threw the hole as it close's. Stran punch's down on the table shattering it and the ground below.

"Dose he know." "No master I shocked Freak before he could say anything sir." "Good I didn't come this far to have it fucked up now. Knives looks back down at Freak and begins cutting and sewing.

Stran rampage's down threw the hall ways till he gets to his room kicks the door off the hinge's and reach's for the to giant pistol's on his wall. "Whats wrong my Angel." Tia says to Stran as if she didn't know. "Some one almost killed Freak and I'm gonna find him and do to him what I did to the moon. That fucker is going to pay I'll follows Freaks trail back to the spot where it happened. "Now Stran calm down there's no need to go blowing up the world Freak well be fine Knives will make him better. Don't even get me started on Knives he wanted to let him die." "He's just trying to make you stronger Stran Knives would never let one of us die." "I suppose your right Tia." "So leave the guns here and just go kill him with your bare hands or better yet beat him unconscious and bring him back here and we'll all have a little fun ok baby. Stran pull's his hands away from the guns walks over to the bed and kiss's Tia. "I'll be back soon this wont take long." "Be safe my Angel." Stran runs down the hall and out of the ship/compound over to the tree he looks down and sees freaks blood stained trail and becomes even more enraged and begins running a fast as he can down the path. "He's gone master he went after Rhez." "Did he take the guns." Asks Knives on the other end. "No I talked him out of it with any luck he'll be bring back Rhez if he doesn't kill him." "I don't want Rhez dead if he dies I'll kill all of you send the twins with him and tell them not to be seen then call Elle and warn her about the situation." "Yes master as you wish." Tia push's a few buttons on her phone and calls Elle "Hello" some one answers on the other line. "Elle it's Tia my Angel is on his way you know what to do." "Aw and I was getting ready to have some fun well you don't have much time so make it quick." Tia hangs up the phone and get dressed. "Azreial Gabriel" The twins look up at Tia from the ground where they had been laying after there last round of training. "Follow Stran make sure he dose not kill Rhez if Rhez dies then so do you." "Yes maim." The twins answer in unison and run threw the door that Tia had entered threw. "O and make sure your not seen." She yells down the hall at the as they turn the corner.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter11

-Rhez-

Elle paced back and forth and cursed her teammates. "Damn it bastards, ruin my fun." She walked over to Rhez as he slowly began to regain his consciousness. "You're lucky my little pet, I don't have any time to play with you now." Rhez looked up and realized that he was restrained. "You… fucking bitch." He said as he struggled awake. Elle frowned and lifted his head up with her hand. "You miserable little…"

Rhez cut her off my spiting in her face. Elle jumped back and wiped her face. "Why you pathetic piece of shit!" She screamed and slapped Rhez across the face. "Come on! We have to move him!" She yelled upstairs. The bartender came walking down the stairs and nodded to her. The bartender punched Rhez hard in the stomach and he went limp, the chains holding him up. Elle unlocked the chains as the bartender hefted Rhez up onto his shoulder. "What are you, stupid?" Rhez said as he popped back to life, snapping the bartender's neck and sending him falling to the ground. Rhez spun towards Elle, ready to beat her senseless. Elle jumped backwards and lit a match. "What's that for?" Rhez said cautiously, expecting an explosive. Elle smiled. "You're going to wish that we had time to play together my little pet."

Seconds later Rhez was tearing up the steps, running for his life as a wave of fire engulfed the stairwell. "Son of a bitch!!!" He screamed and smashed through the door at the top of the stairs. He rolled into the barroom and leapt behind the bar. Flames shot from the stairwell and licked out into room. Elle came walking up the stairs, flames swirling around her as her eyes burned like embers. "Where did you go you little brat?!" She screamed as fire suck from the stairwell and formed a ball in her hand. Rhez popped up from behind the counter, full armed again. "You should have hid my guns!" He yelled as he fired his revolver at Elle. Fire swirled around her in an instant, creating a wall of molten heat. The fire blew the bullets away with ease. Rhez gritted his teeth as he dove back down behind the counter as a jet of flame roared over his head. "Damn it, I have to get out of here… no choice…" He threw a grenade over the counter towards the exit. It exploded as Elle shot another jet of flame across the bar towards him. Rhez rolled out of the way, the entire bar now engulfed in fire. He dropped two more grenades as he ran out of the bar and jumped to the side as a fireball came ripping trough the doorway. The grenades exploded violently, blowing the stability of the structure away. Elle screamed as the flaming ceiling came crashing down on her.

Rhez took a deep breath and stood up as he looked back at the flaming rubble of the bar. "Good riddance bitch." He said and reloaded his gun. An explosion rocked what was left of the bar as Elle came walking out, covered in fire and screaming with rage.

"You're fucking kidding me…" He said to himself. The fire around Elle slowly started to fade, and Rhez could see that she was injured. She fell to her knees and dropped, unconscious.

"ELLE TOO?!" Someone screamed with rage. Rhez turned to see someone walking down the dirt road towards him. It was Stran, but Rhez had no idea who he was. "Who the hell are you? Another goddamn freak tryin' to piss me off?!" Rhez yelled. Stran gritted his teeth and pointed at Rhez as he kept walking towards him. "I'm your worst goddamn nightmare bastard!" Stran screamed as his walk burst into a run. Rhez stopped and fired at the charging Stran. He dodged the bullets and kept coming like an oncoming train. "Go to hell!" Rhez screamed and emptied his gun. Stran leapt high into the air above the shots and came down at Rhez feet first. "You can't dodge in the air asshole!" Rhez screamed as he reloaded in a flash and fired six shots. Blades shot out of Stran's boots as he went into a flurry of kicks, the bullets ricocheting off of his feet and coming down at Rhez like rain. "Shit!" Rhez rolled to the side as Stran came crashing to the ground feet first, sending rocks and dirt flying. Rhez swept his feet towards Stran, but he jumped and flipped forward, bringing his boot blades piercing into the ground. Rhez scrambled to his feet and pulled his sawn off from behind his back. He held it to Stran's head and pulled the trigger. Stran's eyes widened for a split second as he jerked his head to the side, the shotgun slug nearly grazing his face. He swung his arm up as he moved, knocking the shotgun from Rhez's hand and sending it flying away. Rhez back flipped and kicked Stran in the face as he did. Stran stumbled backwards moved his jaw around. "You hit like a girl." He said with a wicked smile. Rhez reloaded and pointed the gun at Stran. "Just who the hell are you?" He asked. Stran cracked his neck and held his fists up. "No more questions!" He yelled and kicked the revolver out of Rhez's hands and up into the air. Stran ripped an uppercut towards Rhez, but Rhez grabbed his arm and used the momentum to fling himself up into the air. He grabbed his gun out of the air and fired down at Stran. Stran dove to the side as the bullets hit the ground. Rhez reloaded in the air and landed away from Stran. Rhez fired his revolver multiple times as Stran rushed him and dodged the bullets. Stran reached out to grab at Rhez, missing by only and inch and catching the strap across Rhez's chest. He ripped at it as Rhez pulled away, pulling the rifle away and throwing it to the side. Stran realized his mistake as he saw the revolver move to an inch away from his face. "Dodge this." Rhez said as he pulled the trigger. The only thing that happened was an empty click. "Shit." Rhez said right before he was sent flying away by a crushing flat kick to the chest. He hit the ground like a rag doll, feeling ribs break as he rolled backwards and jumped to is feet in one motion. Stran was already in his face as Rhez held his arms out and his hidden sleeve guns popped out. He fired them both in vertical lines, shooting Stran from his legs up his body to his shoulders. He screamed and fell to the ground as Rhez retracted the guns. He dropped to a knee and held his ribs in pain. Stran got up a second later, wincing from the pain but casually brushing himself off. "It's gonna take a lot more than a few bullets to stop me." He said as he charged Rhez again. Rhez held his arms up to block, but Stran smashed through and send him flying to the side. Stran jumped up and came down at Rhez with both of his hands balled into fists. Rhez pulled his knife out of nowhere and plunged it deep into Stran's side. Stran screamed in pain, as he head butted Rhez. Rhez scrambled away and held his now bleeding forehead. Stran pulled the knife from his side and threw it away. "Any more toys you want me to break?" He said with sarcasm. Rhez grinned and reached into his pocket. "Just one." He yelled as he threw a small handful of balls to the ground. The balls exploded into a blinding flash of light as they hit. Stran screamed in pain and held his eyes as he was temporarily blinded.

Azreial and Gabriel watched from atop a nearby building.

"Did the other…" "Get away?" They said, finishing each other's sentences. "Why does the master…" "Want this one alive….?" They looked around for Rhez, the flash bomb only partially worked from long range. "We do not see him…" "So we assume he lives…" They said as Stran started to regain his vision. "Where are you coward?!" He screamed out, but got no response.

-Stran-

"Where are…where the hell are you." Stran head over to the nearest car and glanced inside before grabbing the bottom of it and flipped it sending the car rolling over once or twice before rolling into the building splinter the side of the wall. Stran looked around behind himself then to the side and then back in front of him self. "I'LL FIND YOU' YOU KILLED ELLE YOU ALMOST KILLED FREAK YOU WONT GET AWAY." Stran walked over to the nearest building and punched threw the corner of the general shop then walked to the other side and did the same. As he walked across the street to the next shop the building collapsed forward onto it's self. Stran began to do this all the way up the street flipping cars and destroying shops.

"The master."…"Is pissed I hope the."…"Little one gets away or Knives"…"Will kill us." The twins said to each other on top of the cliff side watching the city fall on it's self.

Stran made his way to the last building on the block "A gun shop I bet that little faggot is in there." Stran thinks to himself as he approach's the building. Stran reach's for one of the four pillars holding up the armory's oning and ripped it of. Swinging at the corner of the shop Stran breaks the board over the break walling throwing the board to the side Stran square's off with the building and punches threw several layers of brick and concrete. At the last two corners Stran gets ready to barrage the shop wall again with earth shattering blows. As he makes contact with the first punch glass shatter and a gun shot rings out of the building imbedding its self into Stran's left shoulder. "God damn it will you stop fucking shooting me and get out here and fight you stupid cunt." A few more bullet shots rang out from the shop with no time to flip back out of the way Stran puts his right hand up in front of his face and catches 4 bullets in his palm slowing them down enough for him to move his head out of the way as they come out the back side of his hand. "AAAAAHHHHHH GOD FUCKING DAMN IT." Stran clinch's his fist tight and begins to walk into the shop kicking down the dark wooden door sending it flying into the shop and out the other side. Stran looks around semi cautiously before entering the room. Stran looks around the shop only seeing glass case's with guns inside amd shelves of ammo a few tables inside with ashtrays and empty glass's on the. Stran walks over to the first table and throws it nothing walks over to the second table and throws it. "What is th…" Three tan and brown whisky bottles stand under the table. Stran looks at them "What are they…" Stran's eye's widen as look's behind them and sees several wires going into the bottles. "Damn it" Stran sees a mellow red amber from under the wooden floor boards. Stran runs and jump's over the counter and grabs his head and duck's. "Give me a fucking break." Stran shrills as he looks up remembering all the ammo. "KKKKKKKKAAAAAABBOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM" Wood splinters out across the city and the bullets that went off from the explosion begin to shot off. Cluster's of bullets ring out and shoot every where. Rhez Standing out side looking on "Might have used to much there." Rhez chuckles to him self.

After the smoke begins to clear Rhez try's to focus his eyes enough to see into the Rubble of brick and wood. "Good enough for me." Rhez says to himself as he turns his back and begins to walk away.

"Master said hed kill u"…"SS if Rhez died butt wha"…"TT if Stran dies." The twins say. "Look Str"… "An is not died." Turning there attention the fallen building.

Rhez stops and cock's his head to the side trying to get an eye on the rubble. "What the fuck is this shit no way." A boar begins to shuffle and move Rhez drawls his gun and gets ready to fire. "Fuck it." Rhez fire several shots into the pile of wood where the movement came from shredding the pile of wood. Rhez walks over to the chaos of what was a gun shop and kicks a few boards around revealing a small group of rats. "Hu just rats." Rhez grabs his stomach and begins to laugh as he walks away holstering his gun. Before he has time to walk ten ials away an explosion of wreckage and derby rockets out of the ground. Rhez spins around to see what's left of a tattered man stumble towards him. Covered in blood from head to toe he had several boards sticking out from several place's in his body and one piercing all the way threw is torso. He was missing a left arm and chunk of his right thigh. Stran wobbled his way towards Rhez half step at a time before collapsing to the ground several ials away. Rhez looked at the man in terror as he could not contemplate some one still trying to fight after all that. Once he had realized he had won he walked up to the man on the ground with a smile on his face. "Left arm gone right hand full of holes damn man I hope you got a girlfriend." Rhez said as he kneeled down beside the man. "What's your name anyways." Stran looked up at the girlish looking boy. "Didn't you hear even after you cut off a wolf's head he can still lead a horse to water." Rhez looked at the man he hadn't been around long but even he was sure that that hadn't come out right. "What the hell dose that mean." Stran looked the boy in his eye's. "It mean don't let your guard down." "Shit" Rhez tried to back away but Stran grabbed him by the neck before he could move away. Stran began to squeeze Rhez's neck till he turned blue in the face. Stran pulled him to the ground slamming Rhez's head into the ground. Stran crawled on top of the dazed kid. Propping him self on top of him with his right elbow Stran began to deliver head butt after head butt obliterating his nose and lips blood covered the boys head although it was probably more Stran's then Rhez's. Stran raised him self up for one more when a shadow covered him and Rhez Stran turned to see who the figure was but between the blood in his eyes and the sun on the figures back Stran couldn't tell who it was. "Sorry" Stran seen a hand raise into the air then come swinging down across his face knocking him completely unconscious although at that point the only thing keeping him going was revenge and for all he knew the kid was dead he was at least not getting up for awhile.

"Lets get"…"Him home" "What about"…"The blonde one" The twins said still finishing each others sentences. "Master said"…"Don't let him die not"…"Bring him back." "So we le"…" Ave him." "We"…"Agree".


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter12

-Rhez-

Rhez coughed up blood and rolled to his side. His face was covered in blood, so much so that he couldn't see out of his right eye. He held his gun up towards the men who were walking away from him and carrying a body. He pulled the trigger, the hammer clicked down and no bullet fired. "Empty…" He said absently as he tried to get up and failed. He laid his head down and closed his eyes. Rhez held his hand up to his head and wiped off some of the blood. There was something wrong, his entire face was numb so he couldn't exactly tell what, but there was definitely something wrong. He laughed to himself, how could he have been so stupid? After what felt like forever he finally managed to sit up. His face was throbbing now, the numb had started to ware off, and Rhez wished that it wouldn't have. "God damn it… If I ever find that vampire looking reject again… I'll finish the job for sure." He sputtered as he stood up. There was a noise behind him and he turned to see Elle stumbling towards him out of town. "Oh you fuckin bitch… you just don't know when to die do you?" Rhez said as he struggled to keep his balance. Elle balled up her fists spit blood from her mouth. Her red dress was shredded to the point of near falling off, and she was covered in soot and ashes. "You did this to me! You're the reason all of this happened! My bar, my town! All of it ruined now, because of you!" She screamed. Rhez dropped his revolver and tried to think if he had anything else to shoot her with. "Heh, you are one crazy bitch…" He reached down and pulled the little two shot pistol from his boot. "I'm really not in the mood!" Rhez yelled and pointed the pistol at her. They both took shaky steps towards each other and closed the distance slowly. "Don't think I won't shoot you!" Rhez yelled. Elle stumbled and dropped to a knee. "Go ahead! If he finds out that I failed and I'm still alive…"

"Who?! If who finds out?!" Rhez yelled as he kept walking towards her. She laughed and looked up into the sky. "Him…" She said absently. Rhez knew, something in him told him who 'he' was. "Knives." He said to her. She looked at him with surprise, she hadn't expected him to know her master. "Yes… _him._" She said sadly. Rhez reached her and put the gun to her head. "Do it." She said to him. Rhez pulled the hammer back and touched her forehead with the barrel. "You are going to die if you think I'm bluffing." Rhez said seriously. "And if I believe that you will do it?" She asked.

"Than you will tell me where _he_ is, or I won't pull the trigger, and I'll let _him_ deal with you." Her eyes widened, she knew there were things worse than death. "And if I tell you… you'll kill me?" She asked. "I promise." He said difficultly, the pain of his face climbing slowly as his adrenaline wore off. She opened her mouth to speak, but they heard footsteps from behind Rhez. He turned around and saw Vash standing there and looking at him with a vicious stare. "Don't kill her Rhez!" He screamed. "Do it!" Elle yelled at him. "Tell me, tell me where he is!" Rhez said to her. Vash held his left arm up and his wrist flipped down as the hidden gun popped out. "I'm sorry Rhez." Vash said as the gun fired. Rhez felt the bullet tear through his back and sharp pain overtook him. Seconds later he passed out and hit the ground. Elle screamed and dove for his gun, more than willing to finish herself without his help. Vash was on her in an instant, kicking the gun away and delivering a quick chop to her neck. She fell down unconscious over Rhez and Vash sighed. "It's all going to be different now…"

-Stran-

THREE DAYS LATER

"Stran…Stran wake up Stran". Tia lightly taps Stran on the cheek with her open palm. "Stran wake up my angel". Stran struggles to open his eyes his. "What… what's going on where am I". "Your back at the compound". "Compound ? what compound who are you where's Vash". "Who's Vash what are you talking about Stran your back home with me Tia your girlfriend". Just then a door at the front of Stran's bed room opens and Knives walk threw. "Well brother I'm glad to see your finally awake you took quite a beating". Stran looked at Knives with a confused look. "Brother where brothers" ? "You must have lost your memory Stran and not surprising after those two men nearly killed you. "What why would any one want to kill me". You where trying to save a town full of people from these two evil men a tall blonde man and a blonde young boy they tried to kill one of are sisters and then take out the rest of the town I tried to get to you as soon as I could but by the time I got there I was to late there was nothing I could do so I brought you bake home so we could help fix you". "Fix me what happened". "You lost your left arm". Before Knives could finish the list Stran popped up out of bed and started to look his left side what he found confused him a dull metallic arm rapped in black leather bands. He moved the arm up and down getting a feel for the new appendage. "What is this how I but the seems I don't understand". " Its my gift to you little brother a new arm it might take some getting use to but eventually it will feel normal. Well its time for you to get some more rest will be busy over the next couple weeks Tia if you would follow me please". As Tia and Knives exit the room Tia looks over her shoulder at Stran and gives an absent smile as he examines his new arm.

"Every things going as planned master". Tia says while looking at the ground almost avoiding eye contact with knives".


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter13

-Rhez-

Knives waved Tia away and took a turn down the hall. He kept walking, looking straight forwards without blinking, he had something in mind. He stopped at a door and tapped a few buttons on the panel. The door slid open and light from the hall spilled into the dark room. "I have a job for you." Knives said with a slight smile. Freak stepped into the light, his robotic spider legs hidden in a hump under his trench coat. His head twitched and even his body shook every few seconds. "The other, Rhez, I want him… I want him now… Bring him to me if you want to keep your second life." Without a word Freak slowly walked out of the room, Knives making way for him with a smile. He watched at the Freak stood in the hall, leaned forwards for a second, than broke into a run and disappeared down the hall. "Good boy." Knives said and resumed his walk.

Rhez lay silently as he listened to the people around him talk. He had regained consciousness a few minutes ago, but didn't want to let it show. His memory was fuzzy, he remembered fighting someone, blowing the guy to hell… but after that he didn't remember much. "How is he doing?" Someone said, a woman. A man replied to her. "He is healing at an incredible rate, just like Vash said he would… His ribs are totally mended, and all of that damage to his face has healed already as well. I can't believe it, but he has even managed to regenerate the teeth that where knocked out…" "What about the eye?" The woman asked. "Vash said it was to far gone… but the replacement has fused in beautifully, you can't even tell by looking at him. We won't know how well it actually is until he wakes up, though I expect it should work just fine." "Does anyone know what happened to the poor kid?" "No, Vash wouldn't say, but I bet it has something to do with that woman locked up in the holding cells." Rhez thought about it for a second, Elle… She knew where Knives was, he remembered now. He shot up out of the bed, leaping to his feet and grabbing the man by the shirt. "Where is she?!" He yelled at the man who was dressed as a doctor. The woman, a nurse gasped in surprised and took a step backwards. "Hey calm down kid…. You've been out for three days, Vash will be back in a minute. Just calm down, I need to check your vision…" Rhez pushed him away and looked around the room. "Where am I?" He screamed at the man. "You're in a safe place, so just calm down ok? This is a medical facility aboard a crashed seed ship, Vash brought you here. We had to replace your eye with a synthetic one." The man said. Rhez brought his hand up to his eye. "My… eye?" Rhez said with surprise. "It may take a little getting used to, how to control it I mean. But you should have far superior vision in your right eye now. A zooming function, and an extremely precise heat vision that can double as a night vision." Rhez shook it off, he didn't care about that now. "Look, I have to know where she is!" "Who?" "The woman damn it ! I have to know where you are keeping Elle!"

Elle sat on the bed in the small holding room they had put her in. She thought about Knives, maybe it was best for her to be in here she thought. He couldn't get her in here… Who was she trying to fool? He could get her anywhere. Then a thought crossed her mind, maybe she could be redeemed, maybe if she killed that kid Knives could forgive her failure the first time around. She looked down at the jumpsuit they had given her to wear and frowned. She only needed once chance, one mistake and she could get out of here. But she had no way to find that kid, for all she knew he was a million iles away. The door opened and a man walked in with a tray of food in one hand, a sub-machine gun in the other. She smiled at him as she saw her chance, a lit cigarette in his mouth.

-Stran-

"Knives… Knives". Stran yells as he search's the compound looking for knives. "Knives…Knives." "Yes Stran in here". Knives answers from in a room down a hall.

As Stran walks down the hall his place begins to slow and he grabs his head with both hands and blurry images of a fight flash threw his head as he drops to knee and his face scrunches up beads of sweat form on his fore head as shrill shrieks of pain escape his mouth "what is going on what are these images who's this person where fighting but he seems happy why would he be happy to be fighting I don't understand". "Stran Stran get off the floor get up and stop being a baby its time to start traing". Knives says as he pulls Stran off the ground by his collar with one hand. " But brother I was having some kind of memory flash". "You where probably just remembering a dream you had you cant go rolling around on the ground every time you have some stupid flash or images now follow me its time to start traing your going to need to get use to that new arm of yours if your going to find the people who did this to you and punish them." But brother I don't want to hurt anyone I'm sure in time I'll forgive them". "That's not the way it works Stran if you don't find these people they'll hurt other innocent people who wont stand near the chance you did." "yes brother I guess your right". "You guess or you know" "I know" "Very good now follow me. Stran and knives continue down the hall till they com to a door leading to a very large room almost a 100 yards long and 50 yards wide ceilings almost 6 story's tall chunks of floor missing concrete ruble fill almost every square foot of the room. What looked like fake buildings ran in two rows almost the entire length of the room. "This is where will be training from now on every day until I think your ready to go find the people who did this to you" "Now lets begin show me what you know". Stran begins to survey the room as he dose several different stretch's finally he jumps up and down a couple times while cracking his neck and stopping in a defensive stance. Looking Knives in the "You ready for this."


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter14

-Rhez-

The door to the cell burst open, the guard slamming against the far wall as a torrent of flame engulfed him. Elle came walking out casually, looking down at the man's charred body. She reached down, searching through his pockets and pulling out a lighter. She smiled and flicked it open, sucking the flame into a ball in her hand. "Hey you! Stop!" Someone yelled from behind her. She spun around, a wave of fire exploding outwards from the fire in her hand and engulfing the men down the hall. "You will know why my name is Elle the Heat!" She screamed as she sucked another ball of fire into her hand.

Rhez ran down the halls of the ship as fast as he could. He only partially remembered the directions the doctor had reluctantly given him. "Damn it! Which way was it?!" He yelled to himself. "I can't feel Knives anymore… I can't hear his voice, so I need her to find him…" A distant explosion caught his attention. "Those idiots…" He said to himself and ran off in that direction.

Elle burned down an unsuspecting group hanging out in a hallway. "This damn place is like a maze!" She said to herself. "I have to get out of here and find out where I am…" She thought she heard something and spun to face an empty hall. "Nothing…"

"Hey bitch!" Someone yelled from behind her and she turned to see Rhez standing there. "Just the kid I've been looking for!" Elle screamed as she let loose a blast of flame. Rhez grabbed a burnt body off of the ground holding it up in front of him as the blast of flame slammed into him. He rolled backwards, the body taking the brunt of the damage. Rhez leapt to his feet, kicking up a gun that had been one of the dead men's. He grabbed the gun out of the air and pointed it at Elle in one smooth motion. But he stopped short of shooting as he saw something behind her. Elle turned and was surprised by what she saw. Freak stood in the hall, his coat exploding into a million tatters as the robotic spider legs burst out from his back. "Freak wait I…" Elle started to say, but instantly one of Freak's spider legs impaled her through the stomach. Rhez watched in horror as two of the other legs hit her in the head and the hips in opposite directions, ripping her in half. Freak dashed through the blood spray, legs blocking the bullets that Rhez began firing. "I thought I killed you?!" He yelled as he fired another spray at Freak. "RRRRRRAAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Freak screamed in a reverberating fury. "Shit…" Rhez took off down the hall, Freak slashing and slamming against the walls in a psychotic rage. Rhez emptied the gun shooting backwards as he ran, then throwing the gun in frustration. "You dirty son of a bitch!" Rhez turned and screamed at him, but had no chance to do anything as webbing burst out of Freak's hands, covering him.

-Stran-

Where did he go Stran says to him self trying threw all the dust and debris of the falling stone buildings gun shot's still echoing from knives last barrage of bullets clouding his sense's further. "There" Stran jumps from atop the half leved building he was standing atop heading in the direction he seen the movement come from turning the corner of the second building he passed "SHIT" Stran says as he looks at the gun pointing point blank at his chest in an instant Stran drops to his ass holding him self up by his hands Stran sweep one foot at Knives feet and the other at the gun hoping to either trip him or clear the gun from his hand Knives jumps a crouched position jumping over the feet coming for his legs and ducking under the foot coming for his gun a split second later Stran's on his feet as he sends an upper cut at knives fast before he can land Knives hits Stran's fist with the butt of the gun then spinning it back in to its holster again Stran reaches for knives throught and Knives arch's his back making his neck just out of reach of Stran's hand and back flipping while kicking Stran in the jaw sending him head first into the building behind him after a second of sitting on his ass he opens his eyes just in time to see knives scale the side of one of the two story buildings Stran jumps to his feet and heads for the ally between two of the buildings jumping from side to side kicking of each side as he scales the building. "Fuck not again" just as Stran sets foot on the building he noticed five giant barrels with a lit wick entering the top of the explosives. Stran takes a running leap off of the building trying to make it to the next. as he reaches about the half way point between the buildings hears the explosives go off damn there shattering his eardrums and charring his back he can feel the fire licking his back as the explosion over shoots his jump forcing him into a collision with several buildings with pointed cross's atop of them "SHITSHITSHIT " Stran yells as he relizes that he's going to land on one and be impaled if he doesn't do something quick Stran scans the area quickly in a panic looking for anything to grab on to "There…one of those chains my only hope" Stran reach's for the hanging chains with both arms trying as hard as he can to reach them "hhhmm" Stran thinks to him self "I wonder why these chains are conveyentaly hanging here I mean I'm glad there her but why are there just a bunch of chains hanging in the middle of a room I mean grant it the room being her its self is kinda weird but theres got to be a higher reason some body must be scripting this or something I mean come on O SHIT OSHIT im going to miss the chains". Knives looks on at his new apprentice shamefully. "Holey shit a full memory wipe and he still acts like that buffoon". Stran now looking at the bottom of the chains arms still out reached in desperation begins to panic just as his eyes shut and a blonde man flash's before his eyes a metal arm turning into a gun and just then his mind relaxed his body calmed and the bandages around his arm began to rip and tear and just as the top of his forearm opened up into two sliding sections Stran felt a sharp pain enter his back and exit out the front of his lower abdominal. Laying arched over the top of a cross Stran looked up at the object protruding threw his body "damn I guess he was ready that fucking sucked"


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter15

-Rhez-

Vash the Stampede smiled as he walked up to the ship with the bag of food he had gotten. "Hey everybody! I got some doughnuts…. But someone stole every last one of them on the way back… I swear… well ok there was these starving children and…" He stopped as he opened the door to see people scurrying back and forth and carrying the dead and injured. He dropped the groceries, dread rolling over him. "What… happened?" He said absently. Someone walked past him, then stopped and turned back. "Vash your back… All hell broke lose man, we still aren't sure what happened. That kid woke up and freaked out, then that woman escaped and killed a bunch of people."

"Is Rhez ok, is Elle ok?" He asked desperately. "The woman is… well she is dead… we don't know where the kid is…. there is something about the woman though, it looks like she was ripped in half…"

"Ripped in half? My god… Knives… is this your new Gung Ho Guns?" Vash turned and left without another word. He felt sorry for those who had died, but he had let Knives get to far again. It was time he put a stop to it, the first stop was to get his gun.

Freak walked across the desert, his spider legs dragging a long thread of webbing going back to a human sized cocoon. Rhez struggled to get free inside of the cocoon, but he was unarmed and it was to tight for him to move much. There was no air holes, and there was just barely enough air flow though the webbing for him to breath. It was lucky that he could breathe through it, because that thought never crossed Freak's mind. In truth not many thoughts ever crossed Freaks mind nowadays. There was only one thing echoing through his empty head, bring the boy back. He was to simple to think for himself, and in truth if Knives never gave him an order he would probably sit in a dark room and starve to death. After a long time of walking, Freak came over a hill that overlooked the lush oasis. He didn't say anything, just made a clicking gurgling sound and kept going. He drug Rhez to the entrance, lifting him up and tossing him down without caution. Rhez hit the ground hard, he couldn't see a thing, but he figured they had reached wherever it was they where going. Freak leapt down behind him, picking up the cocoon again and slinging it over his back.

"Freak!" Tia came out of a room like she was surprised to see him. "Is that… that's that kid isn't it? Look we need to get him out of the hallway and into a room. We can't let Stran know he's here ok?" Freak didn't say anything, just waited for Tia to tell him where to go. "Alright, follow me then." She said as she went into a room. She pushed a button hidden under a desk and a hidden door slid open. She walked back and Freak followed her. "Alright, leave him in here and I'll tell Knives about it ok Freak?" He still said nothing, just cocked his head to the side and dropped Rhez to the floor.

"Go back to your room now Freak." She said and he walked away, twitching slightly.

After several hours in his room Stran emerged into the hall way leading to Knives room. As he got closer to the Knives a feeling rushed over his hole body " This feeling is so familiar I know I felt it before but I cant quite put my finger on it." "Stran get in here"

Knives calls to Stran threw the door. "How dose he always know when I'm coming". Stran approach's the door and reach's for the key pad that opens it. Before he has a chance to press any buttons the door slides open and knives is standing in the door way face to face with Stran. "Brother its time for you to leave the compound for a while. There's someone I need you to track down he's going to be are last gun ho gun his name is Randal the Wither he wont come easily but I trust you'll be able to persuade him into seeing are point. "Yes brother". Without hesitation Stran was walking down the hall towards the entrance. Knives picks up his communicator and press a few buttons "Tia its time to bring Rhez out I have a feeling Vash will be joining us soon and I want him ready" .


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter16

-Rhez-

Rhez had been laying in the room for hours. He couldn't move, he couldn't see, and he could hardly breathe. He heard the door slide open and three people walk in.

"Cut him lose." Someone said. Rhez's entire body tingled as he heard the man, he knew this voice, it was Knives. He felt himself being lifted up as someone else cut a slit down the front of the cocoon. Rhez burst out and fell to his knees, the light and air rushing over him and overwhelming his senses.

"Thank you Azreial, Gabriel, you know the rest of your orders, that will be all." Knives said as the twins walked out of the room. Rhez got down on his hands and knees and began coughing. Knives squatted down in front of him, smiling and waiting for Rhez to look up at him. Rhez finally looked up, but after wanting to reach Knives so badly, didn't have much to say.

"Well well little seed, it looks like you've gone and grown without me." Knives said with a smile. "You…. Made me kill those people…." Rhez said with disgust. Knives stood up and put his hands in his pockets. "Did I? Did I _make_ you?" He said as Rhez sat back against the bed in the room. "You took control of me and killed them!" He screamed. "No no no little seed, I simply pointed you in the right direction. You made the right decision to remove the weeds." "They aren't weeds! They're people!" Rhez screamed again. Knives chuckled and shook his head. "And does human life hold value to you? What about those that you killed on the sand steamer?" Rhez cringed when he thought about it, but then came up with an answer. "Those where bad people! Those people deserved it! What about Lena?! She wasn't bad, she helped me!" Rhez jumped up, grabbing Knives around the neck. In one smooth motion Knives chopped Rhez in the throat and kicked his feet out from under him. Rhez hit the ground hard, getting the wind knocked out of him. Knives put a foot on Rhez's throat and pushed down hard enough to slowly choke him. "You see little seed, good and bad are simply construed conceptions of these pathetic creatures. Because every single one of them is bad! They will destroy this world! And in time they will destroy each other. They are a plague and a bane to everything they touch. Murderers, thieves, rapists, every last one of them has something lurking just beneath the surface." "I… Don't…. Believe… you…" Knives pulled his foot back, reaching down and grabbing Rhez by the shirt. With one hand he lifted him off the ground and slammed him against the wall. "They are all spiders little seed!" Rhez's eyes widened at this. "Ah, I see you understand this comparison then? Good, because then you must understand that we are the only ones who can save the butterfly." He let Rhez down and backed off. Rhez looked at him as he rubbed his neck. "Who is the butterfly then?" Knives laughed and turned away. "You will have to find that out for yourself little seed. For me, it is our family." "Our… family? Like Vash?" Knives cracked his neck and looked back at him. "Not exactly… I'm going to leave you in here little seed. There is nothing I can do to help you if you can't see that all of the humans are bad." Knives opened the door and started to leave. "Wait…. I… want to protect them… our family…"

A small smile crossed Knives' face. "Then come with me."

The twins left the compound, looking up at the mid-day suns. "Our orders are to…" "Follow the Stran…" "And assist him as needed…" They said, walking off in the direction he had went.

Rhez hit the ground hard again, Knives shaking his head in disappointment. "You have no hand to hand skills at all." He said as Rhez got up. They had moved to the false town training area. "Give me a gun and…" "You won't always have a gun!" Knives snapped at him. "You already know how to shoot, it is your melee skills that require training. Now on your feet!" Knives screamed as he slammed a fist down, Rhez rolling away just in time. Rhez leapt up, throwing a punch that Knives easily smacked away. He followed his momentum with a low sweeping kick, but Knives jumped the attack and kicked him in the chest. Rhez went rolling backwards, but popped up to his feet as Knives charged him. It became easier as he went, predicting the movement, dodging them, slowly he got the hang of it. They had been going for a while, Rhez was exhausted but Knives still seemed just fine. Rhez threw a sloppy punch, Knives making him pay for it by grabbing his arm and slinging him over his shoulder with force. Rhez slammed hard into the ground. "That's enough for today." Knives said casually. "It will never be enough…" Rhez said to himself. Knives smiled as he walked away. "Good boy."

Nearly a week a passed since Rhez arrived here. He had been aloud to re-arm himself from the armory, there where enough guns there for him to have the same thing he had before with the exception of his revolver. He had added throwing knives loaded on springs in his sleeves, similar to the guns hidden there as well. There was a knock at his door, but he didn't bother to respond. He was just wearing his pants and was suspended upside down from the ceiling by his feet strapped to a bar. He was doing upside down crunches, punching at the air a few times every time he came up. The door slid open and Knives walked in. "Rhez, you didn't answer your door." He said. Rhez dropped down from the ceiling and bowed slightly. "Sorry, I didn't know it was you." He said. Knives waved it off and put a hand on his shoulder. "I have a present for you." "A present?" Knives smiled again. "Two presents actually…" He held up a strange looking gun. It was a revolver, but the drum was placed low and in front of the trigger and it looked more complex than anything Rhez had seen yet. "I thought that you might appreciate its rather unique appearance." Knives spun it in his hand and hand it to Rhez. He took the gun and looked it over. It had a nice weight to it, and something about it just seemed right. "Thank you." He said finally as he put it in the back of his pants. "The other…" Knives said as he motioned towards the door. Rhez's blood ran cold at the sight of who walked through the door. "You?" Elle walked in with a sly smile on her face. "I… saw you die…" Knives laughed and shook his head. "Death is relative, for my children." He said. "Your children?" Rhez said confused. "Well, not my blood children of course. But I did create them."

(Camera pans down into the depths of the lair, showing a huge room full of test tubes and computers. Bodies hang in suspended animation in a green liquid inside of the tubes. Some of them are horribly mutated, some of them looking strikingly like the new Gung Ho Guns.)

"It is no problem for me to simply, re-create them." Rhez took a step back, unsure of what to say. "I… I don't understand…" "You don't need to understand, all you need to remember is that we are the superior species on this planet." Knives said. "So… are the others… our family?" Rhez asked. "No. Not family exactly, but good friends, and maybe more." Elle said as she walked over to Rhez and ran a hand down his chest. "I don't have time for this…" He started to say, but Knives cut him off. "I need you to do something for me Rhez." "Do something for you?" Rhez asked. "We have another friend on his way here, I need you to show him the way." Knives said. "His name is Livio the Twin Fangs, and you will find him in December." Elle kissed his neck and he looked at her, then back at Knives. Knives smiled, turning and leaving the room.

Reverend Tobias Granz, also known as Granz the Wayward stood leaning against an apple tree, spinning the small black cross in his hand. "So, is he ready yet?" He asked as Knives emerged from the bunker. "Yes, I am sending Elle with him, Freak as well." "Freak? Why must I stay behind while that monstrosity goes to have fun?" Granz protested. Knives shot him a glare that dropped the revered to his knees. "Question me again and I will rip you limb from limb!" Knives screamed at him. "Yes master… I am sorry…" Granz whimpered out. "I am sending Elle with him to keep him in check, if he starts to question things again, she can bring him back to our way of thinking. Freak is going incase Livio is as reluctant as Randal tends to be. I do not know where Vash is, or what he is waiting for, but I will use his reluctance to form my new order in one swift motion."

The next morning Rhez came walking out of the base, Elle and Freak already waiting for him. He looked Freak up and down, still not sure of him. "Don't screw this up." Granz said walking up to them. Rhez spun, pulling his new gun and pointing it at Granz. "I don't like you priest, watch your tongue or I'll have Freak here rip it out." Rhez said with a smile, liking the fact that he thought of something for Freak to do. Granz reached for his cross, but stopped as Knives emerged from the base. "Well now Granz, I see that you're wishing a farewell to our travelers." Knives said. Granz nodded and backed away. "Alright then, you should be on your way." Knives said to Rhez. He nodded and started to leave. "I will protect our friends and family… at all costs." He said before leaving. "Come on Freak." Elle said as she walked beside Rhez. Freak followed along behind, once again covered by a long black coat.

Tia walked up beside Granz as Knives returned to the bunker. "Do you think this is wise?" He said to her. "Sending both of them out at the same time, while not knowing where Vash is?" She asked. "Yeah." Granz said without looking at her. "Smarter than questioning him." Tia said before going inside.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter17

-Stran-

As Stran walks across the vast desert both suns beating down on him hard he tops a sand dune overlooking a small town only ten or twelve buildings and a few people walking the short dirt road. A strong wind blew threw the town whirling up the dust on the streets and buildings a few clouds cast a shadow across the last couple of the buildings at the end of the road. "This looks like a good place to take a rest for a while" Stran heads down the dune towards the town humming an unfamiliar song to him self.

As Stran comes closer to the town a few people stop and cup a hand over the top of there brow. "Its him ITS HIM". The one man screams to the other. "He's back he's come to finish the rest of us." Stran stops in his place and looks behind him self. "What… the… hell" Stran says as he looks the giant atrocity up and down. Before him stood a 26 foot tall man with a shaved bulbuls head black goggles and giant metal bracers around his unusually long forearms that were far from proportional to the rest of his body. " And just what is it that you want there big fella". The giant man stood there silently as tear fell from behind his goggles. "What's a matter cat got your tongue". The man stood there silently then took a few steps and walked right past Stran and headed straight for the town. By this time the small town was in a frenzy people where running for cover any where they felt safe after several seconds of screaming and chaos the town went dead silent. With only earth shattering foot steps vibrating threw the air breaking the erie silence. "Hay there fella you don't plane on hurting all those innocent people do ya". The beast walked forward paying no attention to Stran. " HAY IM TALKING TO YOU". Stran finally screamed loosing his unusually long temper. The giant man still paying no mind to the man he more then dwarfed. " Guess I have to do this the hard way". Stran said to him self as he begain a slow jog into a lightning fast sprint. "I tried to do this the easy way". Stran yelled as he jumped side to side then jumping from his right thigh to his left shoulder landing on one foot and spin kicking the giant in the back of the head "WWWOOOPPAAAAAA LALALAAAAAA Take that who big headed Mongoloid". The man finally stopped for a brief second before turning his toward Stran then flicking him off his shoulder and sending him flying towards a building. "Wait this all seems kinda familiar". Stran reach his arm out and leather bands begin fly open and to metal plates pop up and slide to each side sending an almost W shaped bladed hook attached to a thin cable flying out of his arm towards the goliath puncturing his lower abdomen underneath his elbow then pulling Stran towards him faster then a bullet leaving the end of a smoke gun barrel. "wwwwwoooooooooo". Stran yells as the cable drags him in blowing his hair back and making his long black coat quiver in the wind. "This is going to be so cool".

-Rhez-

Rhez spun the cylinder on his new gun, snapping it shut and twirling the gun in his hand. First backwards, then forwards; he sighed and holstered it, looking up at the sky as he walked. "What's wrong?" Elle asked from atop the mount walking beside of him. (I have no idea what those things where called.) She had refused to walk and they had gotten the mount off of a pair of travelers a while back, they wouldn't be needing it anymore. "How much longer is it to December?" He asked absently. "Not much further, and settle down there's no hurry." Elle said looking down at him. "So what is this Livio guy like anyway?" Rhez replied after a second. She shook her head and sneered. "Annoying, very annoying." Rhez looked back at Freak who was walking silently behind them. "Any opinion on this guy?" Rhez said with a smile. Freak just kept walking, silently staring forward. "Good, good, thanks for the input."

A little while later they finally reached the top of a long incline, the desert spread out before them for miles as they topped it and found themselves on a cliff. They looked down upon the city below them, the drab buildings sitting in row after row, but almost at a random interval. "December." Rhez said to himself, then looking to Elle to make sure it was indeed their destination. "Yeah, that's December…" She said without looking at him. "Right!" Rhez said as he leapt out over the cliff. "Shit Rhez what are you doing?!" Elle screamed after him. He landed on the steep incline, dust and dirt flying from his feet as he slid down the cliff like a skier. "Come on Freak!" He screamed, and a second later Freak leapt over the side and came sliding down after him. "No don't you….. dammit…" Elle said, futilely yelling at him. "What got into him… Shit…" She thought to herself. "If he find Livio first… this is bad…" She kicked the mount into motion, taking the long way around the cliff at full gallop.

Rhez slid around a rock, narrowly dodging it and laughing as Freak slid up beside him. "You know this is fun!" He yelled to Freak as they slid apart to miss another rock. They where closing in on the town quickly, Rhez kicked off and flew through the air, flipping forwards and into a sliding landing on a rooftop. Freak planted a perfect landing beside him, his coat fluttering around him. "Show off." Rhez said with a smile, but Freak said nothing. Rhez looked out over the town, then back up at the huge cliff they had just slid down. "Man what was I thinking?" He said out loud, technically talking to Freak but thinking of it more as talking to himself. "So, what does this Livio guy look like?" He asked Freak. After a second of nothing he nodded. "Alright alright, you don't have to be so specific." He thought about it for a second, then nodded and walked to the edge of the roof. "Alright, we split up, meet me back here in an hour. Can we figure out someway for you to tell me if you find anything?" Rhez said to strange and silent man. Freak nodded, but didn't say how and leapt from the building. "Well alright then… I'm sure Elle will be just fine too."

Elle rode into town in hurry, thoughts racing through her head. "I have to find that little idiot… I can't afford to screw up again… and if Livio start getting in his head…" She shook her head and moved out. "Now where are you, you little bastard…"

Rhez walked down the dusty streets of December, looking from building to building. "Time to get serious…" He said to himself. "Now where would I be if I where someone I know nothing about…." He stopped and looked at a large board posted on the side of a building. Numerous drawn portraits adorned it, each with a name and a price. "Vash the Stampede… Sixty billion double dollars…" Rhez said to himself, the name striking a chord somewhere in the back of his head. "Vash… I… I remember Vash…" He said aloud. He remembered everything. His birth, trying to find Knives but finding Vash instead. Staying with the man for a short time before searching for Knives again. Almost getting killed by that crazy strong guy. And finding Knives, but for some reason changing his mind about him… "Is this me? Who the hell am I really?" Rhez said looking down at his hands. He looked back up at the board and found another surprise, himself. He looked at the drawn picture of himself, slightly older. Holding a smoking gun in each hand and with an evil grin on his face. "That hardly looks like me… Do I really look that girly?" He said running a hand through his hair. "Rhez the Eraser… Ten million double dollars…" He looked at the poster and couldn't seem to believe it. "The Eraser?" He said to himself, than read the small print under the price. "Wanted for numerous murders and helping in the destruction of Autumn town." (random name I made up for the town we destroyed.) He looked at the other posters, and found that he knew a lot of the names. "Granz the Wayward, Unknown the Freak, Elle the Heat." There where some that he didn't know as well. "Brilliant Dynamites Neon… Stran the Intrepid"

He stopped on the last name. He looked up at the picture and gritted his teeth, the drawing was pretty off, but it was close enough. "Stran… Your name is Stran…" After a second he brought his attention back to the only one that mattered at the moment. "Livio the Double Fang…" There was no picture. Rhez smiled and shook his head. "Of course there isn't…" He walked away, thinking over the things he had just seen, and trying to figure out how he would find this man.


End file.
